The Jewish holiday of Passover occurs this year after sundown on April 12th and continues for 8 days. This festive event celebrates the exodus of the Israelites from Egyptian slavery.
Although not Jewish myself, I learned about the tradition throughout the pages of this graphic novel. It’s a wild journey led by a small goat and a boy. Here’s what to expect:
At the Passover seder, an out-of-control family cannot find their afikoman — the hidden matzah required for the seder’s ending — and as a result, they are trapped at a seder that cannot end. Six months in, a wisecracking talking goat shows up at their door with bad news: Thousands of years of previous seders have accumulated underneath their seder, and their afikoman is stuck in one of them. Now the family’s “wise child” must travel down with the goat through centuries of previous Passovers to find it– and to discover the questions he needs to start asking.
Black and white illustrations effectively depict historical events the unlikely twosome visit along the way. They include the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, Spanish Inquisition, and the Jewish Roman Wars. The “wise child” narrator has that teenage charm for saying whatever is on his mind. You’ll feel his angst right from the start…
If you’ve ever been to a Passover seder, you know that they feel like they last forever. It’s a holiday celebrating freedom, but you are stuck at that table for a very long time.
The goat, or scapegoat as he refers to himself, leads the way through time. The boy eventually finds the way to ask questions and get answers in a surreal way. ONE LITTLE GOAT is certainly not a definitive guide to Jewish history, but rather a magical celebration. An enjoyable ride that encourages readers to learn more.
INTRODUCING THE AUTHOR/ILLUSTRATOR
About Dara Horn
Dara Horn is the award-winning author of six books. One of Granta magazine’s Best Young American Novelists (2007), she is the recipient of three National Jewish Book Awards and was a finalist for the Kirkus Prize, the Wingate Prize, the Simpson Family Literary Prize, and the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction.
Her books have been selected as New York Times Notable Books, Booklist’s 25 Best Books of the Decade, and San Francisco Chronicle’s Best Books of the Year, and have been translated into twelve languages. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, and Smithsonian, among many other publications.
About Theo Ellsworth
Theo Ellsworth is a self-taught artist and comics creator best known for his graphic novels Capacity and Sleeper Car. In 2010, he was a recipient of the Best Art Vinyl award for the Flying Lotus EP album Pattern + Grid World. He lives with his wife and son in Missoula, Montana.
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Always in the Middle... 