The Sukkah Hop

‘Kids will have a hoot bopping along with a multi-generational procession of families and friends as they visit each others’ sukkahs in this book that illustrates the popular community tradition of the sukkah hop. Barbara Lerman-Golomb’s simple, rhyming verse comes alive in Talia Drigues’ colorful illustrations.’ — Penny Schwartz, Jewish Telegraphic Agency

‘‘With a cast of diverse characters, readers move from one sukkah to the next, discovering the joys of sukkah hopping. This charming board book provides a wonderful opportunity for our little ones to experience the holiday festivities. Highly recommend for preschoolers to K-5.’ — Lisa Wiemer, Association of Jewish Libraries

‘Clever and fun, this rhyming board book invites the reader to join in the process of building a Sukkah. Three-word actions or sounds like “tug, pull, shift” and “hush, pray, light” take children through the preparation to the celebration of Sukkot. Highly recommend for preschoolers.’ — Lisa Wiemer, Association of Jewish Libraries — Lisa Wiemer, Association of Jewish Libraries

‘The Sukkah Hop by Barbara Lerman-Golomb follows a family on a succah crawl, gathering guests as they go. A good starting point for discussions about Succot, it shows elements such as the lulav and the roof greenery. Talia Drigues’s illustrations are full of joyful details, as the diverse guests interact with each other and their pets explore. Age two up.’ — Angela Kiverstein, The Jewish Chronicle

‘The cus­tom of the ​“sukkah hop” is a pop­u­lar expres­sion of com­mu­ni­ty in Jew­ish life. The excite­ment of walk­ing from home to home, shar­ing meals and prayer with the extend­ed com­mu­ni­ty in addi­tion to fam­i­ly mem­bers, adds a spe­cial dimen­sion to the obser­vance of the fall fes­ti­val. The Sukkah Hop cap­tures the joy of this tra­di­tion in sim­ple rhyming text and col­or­ful pic­tures, mak­ing it a per­fect intro­duc­tion to Sukkot for young children.

Talia Drigues’ illus­tra­tions fea­ture a com­bi­na­tion of real­ism and car­toon-like play­ful­ness. The fam­i­ly on the first page is full of enthu­si­asm. The mother’s over­sized eye­glass­es lend a com­ic touch to the scene. The daugh­ter car­ries an over­flow­ing tote bag of paper chains for dec­o­ra­tions; her mother’s choco­late chip cook­ies also seem about to slide off the tray she is car­ry­ing. Much of Bar­bara Ler­man-Golombs’ text is framed by the walls of the sukkah, while on oth­er pages the words appear against a back­ground of sky.

All the impor­tant ele­ments of Sukkot share space in the sto­ry. There are arts and crafts to enhance the sukkah, ener­getic shak­ing of the lulav, plen­ti­ful food, and many dif­fer­ent kinds of peo­ple. A preg­nant woman, an old­er one using a walk­er, a fam­i­ly with two dads, and com­mu­ni­ty mem­bers with a range of skin and hair col­ors, high­light plu­ral­ism. The autumn sea­son brings ​“pump­kins, gourds, and green­ery,” and, when night falls, the space between the s’chach on the roof allows those with­in the sukkah to count the stars.

An ele­ment of fan­ta­sy in this oth­er­wise real­is­tic pic­ture involves the inter­ac­tions between two birds seat­ed on top of the sukkah. In one illus­tra­tion, a bird looks up at the stars through a tiny tele­scope while his com­pan­ion strums a bird-sized gui­tar. In anoth­er illus­tra­tion, one bird con­ducts while the oth­er sings. There is a lot of activ­i­ty to share with chil­dren in this cheer­ful­ly acces­si­ble and high­ly rec­om­mend­ed book.’ — Emi­ly Schnei­der, Jewish Book Council

‘In Barbara Lerman-Golomb’s board book The Sukkah Hop, illustrated by Talia Drigues, a family celebrates Sukkot by visiting a different sukkah each day. At each stop, they participate in holiday festivities, including making decorations, shaking the lulav and etrog, and more. The rhyme is engaging, and the bold illustrations beautifully depict the joy of the holiday.’ — Barbara Bietz, JewishBooksForKids.com

‘I have delightful memories of sukkah hops, traipsing from one sukkah to another with a gaggle of friends. We snacked among fragrant pine branches, admiring golden chains and decorative fall gourds.

The Sukkah Hop brings back those memories. The rhythmic text, accompanied by charming illustrations, follows a family visiting sukkah after sukkah. In each traditional holiday hut, the visitors engage in a different activity. Each new family joins the group, so that the last sukkah visit shows the whole crowd celebrating together.

This book is a sweet introduction to the holiday of Sukkot and its traditions. Some readers might need more explanation of the holiday, the custom of building and using a sukkah, and the tradition of shaking the lulav and etrog. Additionally, it might be interesting to discuss the book’s fall theme which reflects the timing of the holiday in North America. The art shows pumpkins and gourds used to decorate the sukkah. Sukkot in Israel or another area of the world looks different, making for thoughtful comparisons.

The book’s art shows a diverse group of families visiting each other, sending a heartwarming message that Jewish communities include all kinds of families. Young readers will also enjoy the humorously depicted pets that join the sukkah hop. The placement of the text on each page is also artfully designed. Overall, this book expresses the joyful energy of the holiday and would be a welcome addition to a home or school library..’ — Judy Dick, The Jewish Book Garden