The true meaning of the repentance Yom Kippur can be hard to explain to small children, and this book helps.

In prior years, Minnie was too young to go to Yom Kippur services, so when her father tells her that her Yom Kippur birthday will be wonderful in its own way but wonders what that means. She knows the holiday is serious but not what that means.

She fights with her sister, who will not return her doll, and her brother who tells her Yom Kippur will require that she sit still and think about the things she's done wrong during the year. She calls him a liar and runs to her Mom, who reassures her that the kind of birthday she will have is a surprise.

On the day itself, she runs for breakfast, but gets no presents. Mom and Dad are fasting, and go to Temple with Arnold. She waits for a long time, bored.

When they come back, they take her to Temple in the afternoon. Here she sees the Stars of David, the sparkling eternal light over the ark holding Torah scrolls, and the rabbi and cantor (who is a woman).

The rabbi tells the story of Jonah, which is one of two Torah portions for Yom Kippur. Minnie doesn't like the story--until the rabbi explains, "Most people don't do bad things like Jonah did to God, but little things to other people."

When you remember those little things that hurt others, he says, you must apologize as soon as possible. Minnie remembers her fights with her sister and brother, whispers apologies to them--and feels better. As services end, Minnie thrills at the sound of the shofar, the long blast.

Then, the rabbi recites a Kiddush. The congregants come out with a big birthday cake, that says "Happy Birthday Minnie." Minnie hugs her dad.

The important message--to treat others well and always to make amends--comes through loud and clear. Alyssa A. Lappen

I first picked up this book for the title. I thought it was so cute! The pictures and content are great for teaching children about how animals greet each other. Everyone knows that dogs sniff each other, but how many know that Prairie dogs kiss each other, and bite each other if they don't like the other prairie dog! Or that lobsters really do wave at each other. Mrs. Singer gives examples of many different animals and how they greet each other. I think most children from age 8 and up will enjoy this book.

It should be a quiet country night: but not with the sounds made by two owls, three geese, and numerous noisy night animals. A rollicking counting guide is masked within this fun story of a quiet night attacked by the wild.

This book compares different animals such as bees/wasps, spiders/insects, and koala/bears. It gives some basic information on each and compares the differences. This book would be perfect for introducing Venn Diagrams.

The book was very informative, but to me not entirely realistic--not all the characters are very likeable. Also, I found the children in the book improbably precocious. While I think most children could handle the material, some may be upset by it.

I read this book at the age of 10, and it meant a lot for me. My friend had surgery for a heart murmer and I was comforted reading this because I knew what she was going through. This book is a great book for anyone, young or old because it has a great plot and even if you have never been in a hospital, it's easy to relate to.

When I was born, I had a heart murmer (what that girl had in the book) and when i was about 1 month it closed. This book has taught me a lot about the heart problem.

One of the worse stories I have read. The plot is rather boring and the style confusing, and I didn't really care about any of the characters. The Red Lady was boring,and Gabdon was boring.A candidate for a book-burning. Nice cover, though.

There is something otherworldly about this book. Somehow, Marilyn Singer seems to have reached into the psyche of young women and touched on many of the images and ideas which silently haunt us-- the unexplainable bond between women and horses, the growing rift between mother and daughter, and the struggle for an identity being a few. Singer seemlessly blends all the themes relevant to us in a powerful orginial tale as beautiful as the tapestry on the cover. This is an amazing story. ( And no, it is not a sappy love story or a weak fantasy novel. This is an unrecognized treasure. )

This book has been sitting on my shelf for more than 5 years...finally I picked it up and read it! But I couldn't put it down...it was a little slow at first but it was so AWESOME! I love how the book was written and everything....maybe a better ending! Like Jessica found a horse you acted and looked just like Gabdon! I don't know! But it was just sooooooo koooll!

I feel that by reading this book it has made me stronger. There was alot of differnt side stories that got kind of confusing. But I think over all it was a really good book. I don't see myself reading it again though. The book started with a story about this girl that lived her her mom and dad in a pretty ok neighborhood, exept for her family. The Dad was an alcoholic and the Mom wasnt much better so the girl had no one to turn to. One day the police came and took her parents away so she was forced to a new family... The book mostly talked about how she came to adjust to the new life style. This book really made me realize as the reader about whats going on in this world. A lot of people dont realize it because there familes arent bad, but I think this book was a really big eye opener!

Each story in this collections seems to represent a facet of a girl's youth, whether it be dealing with her self imagine, or standing up and fighting for her dreams. When read as a collection, I think these stories pull together to present a realistic picture of the trials faced by teen girls.

I was neither bored, nor enthralled by this collection of stories, but each one left me thinking about something relevant to my life. I think most of the stories in this book tell girls it is ok to be differnt and it is especially ok to expect to achieve your dreams!

My 2 year old enjoys the pictures in this book, but the "story" is poorly written and does nothing to capture the attention of a toddler. I usually just read the first 2 lines on each page and then make up something else -- like "What sound does a dog make?" Or "What color is the ladybug?". My son has definite favorite books, and this is not one of them.

My two year old has grown to like the book. She loves the pictures. I try reading the book verbatim, but she looses interest so I just read one or two sentences. It is not her favorite, she never picks it up, to have it read to her, but when I select it she does not object. The pictures are not bright enough for my 9 mnth old. He has no interest. I would purchse this book for an older two year old who is ready for real pictures and can appreciate the real colored scenery.

This is a terrific book. My baby is now 23 months and still likes her Einstein books. Even small babies will enjoy the bold and colorful pages. The animals are cute and the text is easy enough to hold a young ones attention.
The surface is smooth so it can be wiped clean! A great read!! :)

this book presents the question: can history repeat itself? i suppose it was thought-provoking on some levels, but it wasn't exactly top-quality literature. a good book for teens, but readers looking for some more elite material should avoid this book.

This story was very well written and, throughout it, a question was posed. The question was: Can history repeat itself? Continuously throughout the novel you wonder if Deal will make the same mistake in her present life that both her mother and grandmother made in their past lives. As a high school student, I felt that this novel was truthfully written and can easily be compared to the life of either someone who has stole a boy or girlfriend or to someone has lost a boy or girlfriend.

A modern Cinderella, Solly lives with his stepmother Casey (aka Staircase) and his stepbrothers Jason & Mason while his dad grieves his first wife's loss overseas. In a life overrun by chores, Solly anticipates the coming arrival of a bizarre circus whose performers are rumored to be from outer space, but his stepmother forbids him to go to punish him for a crime he didn't commit. Solly luckily stumbles upon the circus as it is setting up, and before he knows it he is performing for the Ringmaster he idolizes, befriending a red haired girl who looks like his mom, and trying to discover why people only say his mother is gone, not dead. Singer's fast paced mystery has adventure, humor, and magic. Add talking lizards, a few spells, a giant guinea pig, mischievous stepbrothers, a mysterious scrapbook, and real spaceships, and you have a quirky puzzle of a novel that somehow comes together logically. The ending is a bit too neat, but satisfying nonetheless. Solly is a likeable character with appeal to both sexes - curious, sympathetic, and independent. He steps out of character once to cuss. Throughout the novel, Singer freely invents not only adjectives, but also a whole new lizard language - a creative curse would have fit nicely here. The brightly colored cover and festive fonts fit well with the circus theme. Offer to your Lemony Snicket fans for something a bit more cheery and less dreary and funny in an entirely different way.

For generations, girls have dreamed of having their problems magically put into focus via a fairy godmother, no matter how bleak their lives (with or without ugly-hearted step families) might be. Young MEN now have a hero in mysterious shoes, courtesy of charming and prolific children's author, Marilyn Singer. Thanks to an absentee mother, a work-weary father, a nasty stepmother and two creepy step bros, Solly has it tough. But stumbling on (and in) to the Circus Lunicus will definitely put a new spin on his odd little life. Peeking in on Solly's curious adventure is sure to delight readers from 8 to 10 (not to mention the grown-ups smart enough to snuggle up and read it with them).

Writers have always been attracted to circuses and carnivals. Marilyn Singer is no exception. But in her circus, there's more going on than meets the eye (or claw). Solly, her main character, has been stepped on by life (and especially by his step mother and step brothers). But when the circus enters his life, along with various lizards, the scales start to tip in his direction. Why does the ring master seem to know so much about him? Who is the mysterious little girl he keeps running into? And why does his father have such a strange reaction to lizards? Everything is tied together with wit and humor, making this book a fun and satisfying read.