Apples, apples, all year round, juicy, fresh, and yummy. Apples, apples, sweet new year, apples dipped in honey. This tasty tour through the Jewish holidays introduces young children to Rosh Hashanah, Sukkot, Simchat Torah, Hanukkah, Purim, Passover, and Shavuot. Colorful collage illustrations feature a variety of friendly woodland animals enjoying each holiday. PreS-K—This deceptively simple story celebrates a year of Jewish holidays using apples as the through line. With sparse, rhyming text, each spread celebrates a different Jewish holiday, beginning with Rosh Hashanah and continuing through Sukkot, Simchat Torah, Hanukkah, Tu B'shevat, Purim, Passover, and Shavuot. While the minimal text doesn't explain much, each short rhyme includes something about the holiday, whether it is the apples and honey eaten on Rosh Hashanah or the trees planted on Tu B'Shevat. The illustrations are collage style on solid white backgrounds. A fox, bear, and raccoon are depicted fairly realistically, with a slightly cartoony feel. They wear no clothes, but do sit at tables and wave flags. The simple, bold illustrations pop on the white backgrounds and will catch and engage the attention of toddlers and preschoolers. The sparse text and bright illustrations would work equally well for a story time or a one-on-one reading. The lack of explanation makes this book most effective for a knowledgeable Jewish adult to share with a child; the general appeal of food and holidays will speak even to the uninitiated. Brief back matter includes a short author's note on the back cover. VERDICT This will be a welcome addition to Jewish schools and libraries looking for holiday books for their youngest readers. Public libraries will benefit from including this title as well.—Amy Lilien-Harper *An AJL Holiday Highlights Fall 2022 Pick* "Spare rhyming text and bold illustrations celebrate Jewish holidays throughout the year. From Rosh Hashanah to Shavuot, each holiday is represented with an apple-based food. Toddlers and preschoolers will delight in the bright colors, delicious foods and appealing animals." Association of Jewish Libraries "This charm­ing pic­ture book is as enjoy­able and refresh­ing as a juicy apple, excit­ing young read­ers about a deli­cious addi­tion to Jew­ish hol­i­day customs." Jewish Book Council "Apples join the joy of Jewish holiday celebrations in this rollicking, perfectly rhymed journey through the Jewish year." The Sydney Taylor Shmooze "It's a gentle, heartwarming, rhyming introduction to a year full of holidays and apple-y goodness, with the cutest illustrations you've ever seen!" NoodleNuts Kids Books "From Rosh Hashana to Passover, the authors share the tasty ways apples are used to help celebrate Jewish holidays. This is a fun and sweet introduction that can be enhanced with deeper explanations provided by a parent or teacher about each holiday's meaning." The Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle "Children will enjoy the simple rhymes and beautifully rendered paper art. This slim volume will be a welcome addition to any school, synagogue or home library." Association of Jewish Libraries Apples have been special to the Jewish people since ancient times. Sweet and juicy, apples are part of Jewish holiday celebrations throughout the year, from apples and honey on Rosh Hashanah to apple blintzes for Shavuot. Sharing holiday meals and preparing recipes together creates meaningful family traditions. Whether dipped in honey on Rosh Hashanah . . . or baked in blintzes on Shavuot . . . celebrate special times with apples ALL YEAR ROUND. Barbara Bietz is an award-winning author and the creator of the website Jewish Books for Kids where she interviews authors, illustrators, editors, and more. Barbara is a former chair of the Sydney Taylor Book Awards committee (Association of Jewish Libraries). When she isn't writing, Barbara enjoys playing guitar and building dollhouses. She lives with her family in Southern California. June Sobel loves picture books for the way they awaken the wonder of words in children and keep the child alive in adults. Creating books for the very young pre-readers is her passion. She is the author of more than 10 picture books, including the best-selling THE GOODNIGHT TRAIN series. June enjoys exploring the world, hiking, and photography. Her website is junesobel. She lives in Westlake Village, California. Ruth Waters creates illustrations using collage, decorating the paper by hand using brushes, rollers - even old toothbrushes - to create unique textures. As an author/illustrator she has five published picture books and been shortlisted for the World Illustration Awards 2019 and 2020, Children's Book Category. She lives in England.