K-Gr 3-A nice retelling of a familiar tale of kindness and community. Shollar bases her picture book on a Midrash from the Yalkut Shimoni. Avraham and Esther are poor but pious, struggling to put food on the table for their young sons. When a mysterious old man gives Avraham a choice between the blessing of six years of wealth now, or six years of wealth in old age, the man takes the question to his wife. Esther, as wise as her namesake, chooses to take the wealth immediately, and begins a thread of kindness and charity, which reaches throughout their community. They buy shoes for a barefoot child, purchase a chuppah for a bride's wedding day, and give money to help a mother afford her son's bar mitzvah. At the end of the six years, the old man returns to reclaim the treasure, but of course the riches remain with Avraham's family, and "the thread of kindness stretches on to this very day." Mekibel's watercolors lend a dreamy cast to the illustrations, as if they are memories of long ago. A solid addition to Jewish folklore collections.-Martha Link, Louisville Free Public Library, KY Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
