Following the events of October 7, 2023, the pressing need for more children’s books about Israel has become urgent. To help strengthen pride in and connection to Israel, we decided to do something about it “Israeli style” – with chutzpa. We are gifting 18,000 books about Israel to children in North America over the next 18 months. The costs will be covered by donations, some books will be printed in Israel to support the local economy and some books will be purchased from publishers outside Israel. The picture books (2 -7 yrs) showcase life, culture and the natural beauty of the country.
Made possible through the generous support of Danna Azrieli & Danny Hakim and Fran & Bobby Lent.
Here are the first books we selected for the project. We purchased A Concert in the Sand from Kar Ben Publishing and My Israel and Me from Kalaniot in the US. Sweet Letters, Not at the Same Time, Noni and Ima, Superhero Ben and Hatikva where published by Mizrahi Books in Israel with both the English translations and the Hebrew text.
We have partnered with the JCC Association of North America and distributed the first seven thousand books to ten communities. Veronica Maravankin, Vice President, Sheva Center took the initiative to built a dedicated year-long ‘Israel’ curriculum around them and to train the teachers. Some books will remain in the classroom, but most are given to the children to take home and share with their friends and family.
We are currently raising funds to purchase and distribute 11 additional titles about Israel. Please join us in this effort by donating via the button below. Thank you for your support!
JCC Chicago Early Childhood at Am Shalom’s Brown Bears class reading —Superhero Ben. "As we read this story, we looked at the pictures in this book and compared how life in the United States and in Israel are the same and different. Your children did a fabulous job and are excited to bring the book home and share it with you.” Teacher Eden.
TheTeam
The team comprises members of the international children’s writers and illustrators’ community with special interest in Israel.
Project initiator Michelle Orrelle has over twenty years international experience in media and entertainment and is joined by a network of advisors including:
Galina Vromen – Former Executive Director of PJ Library Israel (Sifriyat Pajama)
Susan Kusel – Author, librarian, bookstore buyer, and judge for major literary awards including the Caldecott Medal and Sydney Taylor Book Award
Anna Levine – Author, founder of SCBWI Israel, and Regional Advisor Emeritus
Sarah Aronson – Writer and instructor at The Highlights Foundation.
Israel Mizrahi– Manager and owner of M. Mizrahi family publishing house Media, content provider, publisher.
Devora Busheri – Editor-in-Chief, Mizrahi Books; PJ Library author, Jewish educator, PJ library author, editor and translator and content editor at the Shalom Hartman Institute.
Jany Finkielsztein – public school educator, Senior Education Analyst CAMERA Education Institute and member of Read Your World's Advisory Board.
Persha Valman– Fractional CFO, Finance Leader, Lecturer & Author. Finance executive with 25+ years of global experience in building teams and scalable systems for startups.
Many more clever, helpful and concerned professionals are also assisting us in realizing this important project. Please be in touch if you'd like to join us.
Contact
+972 52 6770808
