Bagels From Benny. Aubrey Davis. Illustrated by Dušan Petrišcic. Toronto, ON: Kids Can Press, 2003. 32 pp., cloth, $17.95. ISBN 1-55337-417-7. Subject Headings: Bagels-Folklore. Jews-Folklore. Tales-Spain. Kindergarten-grade 3 / Ages 5-8. Review by Reesa Cohen. **** /4

excerpt:

Benny was puzzled.

“Why shouldn't Mrs. Green thank you? You make the Bagels."

Grandpa lifted Benny onto the counter.

"Benny," he asked. "Aren't bagels made with flour?"

"Yes," said Benny.

"Doesn't flour come from wheat?"

"Yes," Benny nodded.

"Where does wheat come from?"

"From the earth," answered Benny.

"And who made the earth?"

"God did, " Benny replied.

Grandpa smiled. "Then thank God for the bagels."

Davis' talents as a storyteller and his abilities to adapt simple cultural folk tales that will appeal to young readers are evident here as they were in his other books, Bone Button Borscht and The Enormous Potato.

     Benny's Grandpa has a reputation for making wonderful bagels that his customers say are "made with love." In response to their appreciation, a wise Grandpa explains to Benny that it is indeed God who must be thanked. At first, Benny is troubled by how he might thank God, but his strong desire to do so, coupled with an inspiration, leads him to the synagogue, a house of worship, where he leaves bagels for God inside the holy Ark.

     An interesting twist to this story leads to a hungry man’s being the beneficiary of the tasty bagels, and he, in turn, promises to help others.

     The joyful and satisfying ending carries the book's not too subtle message of caring, sharing and the discovery that there is more than one way to thank God.

     This delightful story, now a legend, which the author notes has its roots in the ancient Jewish folklore of Spain, is told with humour and sensitivity. But there is also a freshness and vitality to this retelling, apparent in the amusing dialogue between the customers and Grandpa and between Benny and his Grandpa. This liveliness is echoed in Dušan Petrišcic’s expressive artwork rendered in watercolour and pencil and full of energy, with a comic touch. The illustrations alternate on each double page. There are small, clever pencil "sketches" on the left side done in sepia tones of Benny, Grandpa, the Synagogue, the Ark, foreshadowing the story and slightly more colourful drawings but still predominantly brown, on the right hand side. These illustrations are encased in the shape of a circle, mimicking the shape of a bagel. Several of the drawings feature the characters bursting through the circular shape with humour and exuberance. The result is pure charm and whimsy!

Highly Recommended.

Reesa Cohen is an Instructor of Children's Literature and Information Literacy at the Faculty of Education, University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, MB.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

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Published by The Manitoba Library Association ISSN 1201-9364

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