The Little Red Hen and the Passover Matzah

I'm usually skeptical of religious books, but this one was fantastic. The Little Red Hen makes a perfect Yiddish-speaking character, going about all the necessary tasks herself, while her "friends" Sheep, Horse, and Dog refuse to pitch in when asked. When they come knocking on her door at the beginning of her Seder, she relents and lets them in...but guess who has to do the dishes? A wonderful read-aloud.

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Re-read March 2019

The traditional tale of the Little Red Hen, who plants and harvests her own grain, takes it to the miller, and bakes it into bread, all by herself, and then must decide whether to share the fruits of her labor with her lazy friends, is retold by Leslie Kimmelman as a Passover story in this appealing new picture-book. Determined to be prepared for the holiday, the Little Red Hen begins far in advance, planting the wheat she will need to make matzah. But "Oy gevalt!" Her friends - Dog, Horse and Sheep - refuse (sometimes quite rudely) all of her many requests for help. Which doesn't stop them from showing up to enjoy the Passover Seder, of course! Will the Little Red Hen send them on their way? Or will she remember the words from the show more Haggadah, "Let all who are hungry come and eat?"

Like Jane Breskin Zalben's Happy Passover, Rosie, this is a fun holiday tale whose purpose is not so much to explain the story and significance of Passover, as to offer an entertaining story incorporating its celebration. A brief afterword does provide some additional information about the holiday, as well as a recipe for matzah, but The Little Red Hen and the Passover Matzah is primarily a book for entertainment. I appreciated Kimmelman's reworking of the tale, which, with its theme of grain cultivation and baking, seemed particularly relevant to a story about making matzah. Paul Meisel's ink, watercolor, and pastel illustrations are lively and colorful. All in all, an appealing tale, recommended to anyone who is looking for good Passover storybooks. show less

I love this version of the little red hen! It is a gracious twist that the hen invites the other animals to eat with her, after not helping with the matzah preparations; they are contrite and help with the dishes after the meal! I may read this book in my English Language Development class, as we are currently doing a unit on where foods come from. This book is perfect for illustrating the process of planting, grinding, kneading, and baking!

The author cleverly folds Yiddish proverbs and the halacha of making matzah for Pesach into the tale of the Little Red Hen, demonstrating along the way the values of kindness and of forgiveness. (The hen's friends show their true repentance by doing the dishes after the seder.) Very well written, reads aloud well. True to its epigraph: "The greatest wisdom of all is kindness." - Marla S.

The little red hen is no stranger to work, but why should she do everything herself when she has friends to help her? Passover will be here all too soon, and preparing for it is a lot of work. The little red hen is not worried; she has many friends. Always one step ahead of everyone else, the little red hen begins preparing for the holiday by planting grain. Who will help her? "Not I," said the Sheep, the Horse, and the Dog. The little red hen soon learns that it is up to her alone to plant, harvest, and carry the wheat to the mill.

As the months go by the little red hen becomes more and more disappointed in her lazy friends. She even has to bake the matzah all by herself. Just when it is time to sit down for the delicious Seder meal, show more who should show up at her door, but her lazy friends. What is a good hen to do? Turn them out or invite them in? Learn about the real meaning of the celebration in this charming picture book.

The Bottom Line: This little book blends the classic tale of the little red hen with aspects from the Jewish holiday of Passover. Meisel uses simple, colorful artwork in watercolor, pastel, and ink to illustrate this clever story with a twist at the end. The large print is helpful for new readers. This picture book also includes information about the Jewish holiday of Passover, a recipe to make Matzah, and a brief glossary of Yiddish words used in the story. This is perfect for classroom storytime as an introduction to the holiday.

This review also appears at the Mini Book Bytes Book Review Blog. show less

The Little Red Hen wants to make matzah for Passover and hopes her friends will help. Just like in the familiar story, Sheep, Horse, and Dog flatly refuse. But, remembering the words from the Haggadah, "Let all who are hungry come and eat," Little Red Hen welcomes her friends to the Seder. And after the meal, guess who does the dishes? (Preschool - Grade 2)

This is an interesting account of the classic tale The Little Red Hen. I liked that it incorporated the Jewish culture and the Yiddish terms in the glossary are fun to learn. It would be a great one to add to a study of classic tales.