Izzy the Whiz and Passover McClean

by Yael Mermelstein, Carrie Hartman (Illustrator)

Izzy the Whiz is an amateur inventor who, right before Passover, creates a super duper machine that whirs and purrs and munches and crunches and miraculously cleans the entire house just in time for the holiday – but not without creating havoc along the way. A fun, crazy, rhyming tale a la Dr. Seuss.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Jewish

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Yael Mermelstein holds an MA in Jewish Education, and teaches at a post high school institution in Israel. A winner of the Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award, Yael writes regularly for publication and is the author of two childrens' books; The Stupendous Adventures of Shragi and Shia published by Artscroll and The Car that Goes Far published by Hachai. She lives in the pastoral Judean Hills with her husband, their delicious children and her pet computer.

Yael Mermelstein is excited to announce the release of her new book; Moonlight, a collection of emotionally stirring and thought provoking short fiction stories, published by Targum Press.

Reviews

[Jon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Izzy's invention it would be wonderful to have!

[Tori · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute with fun rhythms and rhymes, but I could have done without the anxious Jewish mother stereotypes.

[Sara Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun Passover book! For those familiar with the Jewish holiday, this is a delightful fun book about a boy who is cleaning up hametz (forbidden foods for Passover) in time for Seder. For those not familiar, this is a chance to learn a little about life in a Jewish household. It’s an introduction with a little information so it’s not a book that will explain Passover but it will peak curiosity.
Izzy is the family inventor and he promises his mom he will have everything clean before she gets up from her nap. The story is sweet and the tad of suspense leaves the reader feeling as if they have been privileged to see the McClean in action without feeling tense.
The story is written in rhyme. It does stall a bit here and there but the majority is smooth. The illustrations are bright and engaging. For the most part, I would see this story engaging all ages but more so for the young grade school reader. There is some words that would be tough for the youngest reader but with help they could easily read the book.

[Christine Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Izzy the Whiz is an amateur inventor who, right before Passover, creates a super duper machine that whirs and purrs and munches and crunches and miraculously cleans the entire house just in time for the holiday but not without creating havoc along the way. A fun, crazy, rhyming tale a la Dr. Seuss.

Subjects

Inventions -- Juvenile fiction.

Passover -- Juvenile fiction.

Hametz -- Juvenile fiction.

Jews -- Juvenile fiction

Stories in rhyme

Note - Would work for a storytime but will be too long for young children.

[Jennifer Heise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amusing for the technologically inclined child of observant Jewish parents. We got it through PJ Library and since we're a mixed family don't do the Hametz shock cleaning it's not all that relevant to us. But the pictures are fun, there's humor, and the rhymes are not forced and fun to read. If your family does Hametz cleaning this is good choice.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rhythmic book about cleaning the house for passover. Illustrations are brightly colored and support text well. The author/illustrator page also includes a note about passover and the term hametz. Overall, a very fun and readable picture book about passover. This book entertains as it informs.

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun and cute. But other than talking about spring cleaning it doesn't really talk about Passover. I would have enjoyed a little bit more discussion of that!

[Shelli · Rating 1 out of 5]

Just kind of ... well stupid. Yeah that about sums it up.