#870 of 1001 · December 18, 2022

Today at sundown, Hanukkah begins. In recognition of a holiday I grew up celebrating with my family, I am turning to an old childhood favorite. Eric A. Kimmel and Trina Schart Hyman present a thrillingly entertaining yarn in Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins. In this tale of outlandish monsters, patience and cleverness trump brute force every time. Hershel of Ostropol arrives in a little town on the first night of Hanukkah, dismayed to find the houses dark and quiet. A foul band of goblins has driven the villagers out of the synagogue and forbidden dreidels, menorahs, and all other forms of Hanukkah celebration. Hershel bravely agrees to spend eight nights in the little temple and take on the creatures one by one. He bests the goblins with a succession of simple tricks—an egg that looks like a stone, a jar of pickles, a game of dreidel with unfair rules. Finally, he takes on the king of the goblins, a demonic, looming shadow that threatens to destroy him utterly. However, keeping his faith and his brains about him, Hershel outwits his foe; light defeats the power of darkness. Kimmel’s writing draws the reader expertly into the action, while Hyman’s grotesque goblin horde elicits grins and gasps in equal measure. #hanukkah #goblin #dark #darkness #light #magic #book #books #childrensbooks #beautifulbook #beautifulbooks #beautifulbookcovers #picturebook #picturebooks #picturebookillustration #picturebookart #childrensbookillustration #childrensliterature #illustration #kidlit #kidsbooks #bookworm #booklover #booklovers #bibliophile #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookstagrammers #instabook #instabooks