The Book of Candles: Eight Poems for Hanukkah
by Laurel Snyder; illus. by Leanne Hatch
Primary    Clarion/HarperCollins    40 pp.
9/25    9780063278141    $19.99

Snyder offers a poem and a “thought” for each night of Hanukkah, relatably emphasizing the ways the holiday intertwines with everyday life (more so, as an author’s note explains, than some other Jewish holidays). Celebrants light candles after going out for pizza, or early to avoid striking matches on Shabbat…or, when a flat tire delays their return home, on an improvised “bananukkiah.” The accessible poems elicit emotions such as the hushed anticipation of hanukkiah lighting, and the “thought” callouts make informative connections to Jewish law and tradition. The illustrations, digitally created using hand-painted textures, depict a celebrating family in homey scenes and in an atmospheric wintry landscape.

From the November/December 2025 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.