Hanukkah Upside Down

Noah and his family live in New York City; his cousin Nora and her family live in Aotearoa, New Zealand. In frequent phone calls, the two pale-skinned kids compare seasonal differences between their respective hemispheres; as they do, they love arguing about “which one of them was upside down,” Weissman writes. Hanukkah ups the ante on their friendly rivalry: is the holiday better in the winter or the summer? As they engage in activities (hot chocolate and snowballs vs. hot chips and cannonballs) and post photos to a shared album, Hoffmann’s jaunty, editorial-style cartoons show two kids who brim with individual confidence and who come to realize, through the nightly Hanukkah rituals, how much they share. This includes gratitude for “great miracles, then and now and all around,” and a faith and traditions that transcend time zones and geography, making the world feel “right side up” no matter where they stand. Ages 4–8. (Sept.)