Latkes and Applesauce: A Hanukkah Story

by Fran Manushkin, Kris Easler (Illustrator)

Overview

A cat and dog create a Hanukkah miracle, just in the nick of time in this updated reissue of the beloved holiday classic.

The Menashes love latkes and applesauce during Hanukkah. But a blizzard begins and erases any hope that they’ll harvest potatoes and apples in time. When a stray cat and dog show up, there’s not a lot of food to offer them, but kindness prevails, and they’re invited in. It turns out that the dog—Latke—and the cat—Applesauce—save the day.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781623541569
Publisher:	Charlesbridge
Publication date:	09/27/2022
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	282,802
Product dimensions:	8.38(w) x 10.31(h) x 0.39(d)
Lexile:	AD530L (what's this?)
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

Before Fran Manushkin became a writer, she worked as an editorial assistant at Harper & Row with Ursula Nordstrom and Charlotte Zolotow. When Fran speaks at schools, she shows children her messy manuscripts and talks about how much stubbornness and good humor it takes to accomplish anything in life. She is the author of more than 75 books for children over her four-decade career.

Kris Easler lives in Minneapolis with her husband and two cats. She spends her free time reading, drinking tea, and playing the ukulele, though usually not at the same time. She has illustrated several children's book covers, and this is her first picture book. www.kriseasler.com

Editorial Reviews

♦ A heavy snowstorm affects a family’s Hanukkah celebrations.

This new version of a tale originally published in 1989 with illustrations by Robin Spowart sees the Menashe family planning to celebrate Hanukkah with the traditional candles, games, and, most especially, delicious feasts of latkes and applesauce. But the snow is falling relentlessly, there are no apples in the house, and the potatoes are covered under the heavy snow. Still, Papa, Mama, Rebecca, and Ezra find joy in lighting the candles, one more each night, playing the dreidel game, and eating their quickly dwindling chicken soup. Two visitors, a small kitten and a skinny dog, provide a surprising and very satisfying conclusion, reflected in the wonderfully appropriate new names they are given. The narrative feels like a folktale, with simple, descriptive language that highlights ever hopeful Papa’s charming phrases as he encourages a cheerful outlook. Easler’s large-scale, digitally rendered graphite and gouache illustrations complement the text and add lovely touches of humor. The family members are expressive, depicted with tan skin and dark brown hair. Although the tale is set “long ago in a village far away,” there is a definite modernity to the family’s clothes and furnishings. The author addresses young readers at the end, asking if the story is a miracle (“Who can say? It happened, and maybe that is miracle enough for anyone!”). 

A warm and tender tale of a loving Jewish family celebrating an ancient tradition. (information on Hanukkah, latkes and applesauce, and the dreidel) 

— Kirkus Reviews, starred review


It’s Hanukkah, and the Menashe family is stuck at home during a blizzard in this picture-book reissue, with new illustrations and an updated text. The family is out of apples, and their potatoes are buried under the snow. As the snow keeps falling throughout the holiday and the lack of food becomes more serious, a cat and then a dog arrive in need of help—and ultimately lead the family to discoveries that feel miraculous…and are definitely delicious. The tale of generosity rewarded draws readers (and listeners) in with a storyteller’s cadence, and the mixed-media illustrations show deep-blue winter nights and warm, luminous family scenes. Back matter gives more information about various elements of Hanukkah.
—The Horn Book


“Long ago in a village far away,” the Menashe family is ready to celebrate Hanukkah, but their plans are foiled by a blizzard. Latkes and Applesauce: A Hanukkah Story updates the text of a charming wintry tale originally published in 1989, replacing Robin Spowart’s illustrations with new artwork by Kris Easler.Mama, Papa, Rebecca and Ezra usually dig up potatoes from their garden to make latkes and pick apples from their trees for applesauce. This year, Mama notes, “the blizzard has swallowed our feast.” As the days pass, the family’s food supply dwindles, yet they continue to celebrate as best they can.Author Fran Manushkin heightens the tension yet keeps the mood upbeat and reassuring. Two unexpected visitors, a stray cat and dog, delight the children but also mean more mouths to feed. “Where there’s life, there’s hope,” Papa repeatedly reminds his family.Easler’s illustrations lend a contemporary vibe to this “long ago” family. Every spread is bathed in warmth, the glow emanating from the Menashes’ home contrasting with the deep blue of the falling snow. The kindness shown to the stray animals leads to a solution to the family’s dilemma that’s a bit predictable but still rewarding. Cheerful and cozy, this edition of Latkes and Applesauce has the makings of a new classic.

—BookPage

From the Publisher

★ 2022-08-17
A heavy snowstorm affects a family’s Hanukkah celebrations.

This new version of a tale originally published in 1989 with illustrations by Robin Spowart sees the Menashe family planning to celebrate Hanukkah with the traditional candles, games, and, most especially, delicious feasts of latkes and applesauce. But the snow is falling relentlessly, there are no apples in the house, and the potatoes are covered under the heavy snow. Still, Papa, Mama, Rebecca, and Ezra find joy in lighting the candles, one more each night, playing the dreidel game, and eating their quickly dwindling chicken soup. Two visitors, a small kitten and a skinny dog, provide a surprising and very satisfying conclusion, reflected in the wonderfully appropriate new names they are given. The narrative feels like a folktale, with simple, descriptive language that highlights ever hopeful Papa’s charming phrases as he encourages a cheerful outlook. Easler’s large-scale, digitally rendered graphite and gouache illustrations complement the text and add lovely touches of humor. The family members are expressive, depicted with tan skin and dark brown hair. Although the tale is set “long ago in a village far away,” there is a definite modernity to the family’s clothes and furnishings. The author addresses young readers at the end, asking if the story is a miracle (“Who can say? It happened, and maybe that is miracle enough for anyone!”). (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A warm and tender tale of a loving Jewish family celebrating an ancient tradition. (information on Hanukkah, latkes and applesauce, and the dreidel) (Picture book. 3-8)

Kirkus Reviews

In old Poland, Papa, Mama and children Rebecca and Ezra are surprised by an early blizzard on the first night of Hanukkah. Unable to dig up potatoes for latkes or pick apples for applesauce, they huddle in a darkened room lit only by the shammes and the first candle on the menorah. Over the next two nights, the family gives shelter to a stray dog and a bedraggled kitten. On the holiday's last night, the sky finally clears and they all venture outdoors. The dog miraculously digs up buried potatoes; Papa, rescuing the cat from a tree, discovers some apples. The family can now feast on the traditional holiday foods while they enjoy their new pets--Latke the dog and Applesauce the cat. Written in evocative Yiddish-inflected language, this is a pleasing addition to the holiday bookshelf. Spowart's soft, blurred pastels give the story an added sense of warmth and security. Included are an afterword on the ``Story of Hanukkah,'' a latke recipe and instructions on how to play dreidel. Ages 3-7. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

A blizzard leaves a peasant family housebound at Hanukkah with the potatoes for latkes buried under the snowdrifts. There are no apples for applesauce, either, since the harvest was poor. But when the family takes in first a stray cat and later a stray dog, the two animals return the favor. On the eighth night of celebration, when the storm finally clears and the nearly starving group ventures out, the dog digs potatoes and the cat mews in the apple tree where apples are miraculously now hanging. Curious children may well ask why the family didn't prepare by digging potatoes before the holiday. Nevertheless, this gentle story is well served by Spowart's earth-toned chalk illustrations that depict the family in rounded shapes with an economy of detail. An end note explains the holiday and gives directions for playing dreidel and an elaborate recipe for latkes.

School Library Journal