Jodie's Hanukkah Dig

November 1, 2008
Jodie wants to be an archeologist; she 's eager to uncover treasures of ancient lands, just like her dad. Fortunately, she lives in Israel and is thrilled when her father agrees to take her on a dig to Modi 'in, the site where Judah Maccabee fought the Syrians. Excited to help, Jodie convinces her father and the site 's head professor to let her scout down a small hole. Carefully lowered within a bucket, she announces a passageway of caves and grabs a possible arrowhead before being lifted back up. Topaz 's watercolors delineate a freckle-faced little girl whose agility and curiosity parallel the Maccabeean stamina in their struggle. Jodie 's find could possibly be from the time of the Maccabees, as she explains, who "must have been nimble enough to crawl through the tiny passageways, brave enough not to be afraid of the dark, and strong enough to fight off all the people who thought they were too little to win. " Levine provides an intriguing alternative to conventional retellings of the Hanukkah tale, juxtaposing archeology 's importance in understanding history against the ancient tradition. (Picture book. 5-8)

(COPYRIGHT (2008) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

October 1, 2008
Gr 1-3-An Israeli girl wants to become an archaeologist like her father and has the opportunity to assist at a dig where Judah Maccabee fought against the Syrians. Braving darkness, spiders, and her own fear, Jodie volunteers to be lowered into a small underground cave where she discovers a literal piece of the past. However, aside from a brief reference to the brave leader featured in the Hanukkah story, there is nothing in this book to suggest that it belongs on the holiday shelf. It presupposes knowledge of Israels archaeological significance and the origins of Hanukkah by focusing solely on the facts of the dig. Watercolor illustrations give a good sense of the Israeli landscape both above and below ground. A reasonable choice for career day, but not for general holiday collections."Teri Markson, Los Angeles Public Library"

Copyright 2008 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2009
Jodie's archaeologist father takes her to his dig site in Modi'in near their Jerusalem home. There, Jodie overcomes her fears of the dark and spiders when, implausibly (and irresponsibly) the dig manager lowers her, sitting in a bucket, into a hole in the ground to look around. Stiff illustrations, many of people pointing for various reasons, feature more accomplished backgrounds.

(Copyright 2009 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)