Is it Hanukkah, Yet?

by Nancy E. Krulik, DyAnne DiSalvo-Ryan (Illustrator)

"Is it Hanukkah yet?"
"Not yet. We have to wait for the sun to set!"

Families who celebrate Hanukkah will recognize this familiar refrain. And what better way to make the wait go faster than to read this sweet family story about how one very enthusiastic little girl awaits the holiday? Kids will find their favorite songs, games, and traditions in this early reader that captures the joy and warmth of the Festival of Lights.

Genres: Holiday, Childrens, Jewish, Picture Books, Christmas

32 pages, Paperback

First published July 25, 2000

About the author

Nancy Krulik is the author of more than 100 books for children and young adults, including three New York Times bestsellers. She is best known, however, for being the author and creator of the Katie Kazoo Switcheroo book series, which has brought her to the attention of second, third, and fourth graders nationwide.

Nancy has also written extensively for teens and is well known as a biographer of Hollywood's hottest young stars. Her knowledge of the details of celebrities lives has made her a desired guest on several entertainment shows on the E! network as well as on Extra and Access Hollywood. She can be seen there talking about the secret lives of such celebs as Leonardo DiCaprio, Cameron Diaz, Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears, Hilary Duff, and Frankie Muniz. Nancy has also been a guest on radio broadcasts nationwide discussing the superstars she has researched over the years.

As the author of several teen and preteen advice books, including Grosset and Dunlap's Prom!: The Complete Guide to a Truly Spectacular Night, Nancy has been interviewed by several prominent magazines including Cosmo Girl, Teen, Teen People, Seventeen, and Teen Celebrity. She has also been the celebrity guest for three Teen People chat presentations. Nancy has recently begun to delve into the teen novel market, writing four romances for young adults, all of which will be published between 2004 and 2005.

Nancy currently lives in Manhattan with her husband, composer Daniel Burwasser, their two children, Amanda and Ian, and a crazed cockerspaniel named Pepper .

Reviews

[Beth Rodgers · Rating 5 out of 5]

'Is It Hanukkah Yet?' by Nancy Krulik, illustrated by Monique Dong, is a cute story about the miracle of Hanukkah, both past and present. The little girl in the story gets to spend time with her parents and grandparents as they eat latkes, tell the story of the miracle of the holiday, light candles in the menorah, spin dreidels, give gifts, eat tasty holiday desserts, and more. The excitement is even more palpable when the girl realizes that she gets to celebrate for eight days and do it all over again as the holiday passes.

This Step Into Reading book works well with younger children, but the ideas hold true for any age. Hanukkah is a holiday all about miracles and happiness, and this book captures those sentiments well. The illustrations are sweet and colorful and add to the special feelings that the characters embrace as they take part in all of the parts of the day. A fun and wholesome read for the holiday season.

Beth Rodgers, Author of ‘Welcome to Chanu-Con!,’ a Children's Picture Book, and ‘Freshman Fourteen’ and ‘Sweet Fifteen,’ Young Adult Novels

*Review originally posted at YABooksCentral.com*

[Julie Ditton · Rating 4 out of 5]

This cute book follows a youngster who is anxiously awaiting sunset so that she can celebrate Hanukkah. She helps her grandparents prepare as they set up the menorah and fry up latkes. Then we read about Hanukkah dinner, lighting the candles ,playing dreidels and opening gifts. This book is an early reader that preschool and kindergartners can read with help. Parents will also want to look at the Chris Barash picture book with the same title. His Is It Hanukkah Yet? is a rhyming story about anticipating the holiday and the season.

[Annabelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about a little girl eagerly anticipating the start of Hanukkah as she prepares with her family through holiday traditions like lighting the menorah and playing dreidel. It's a nice introduction to Hanukkah customs, perfect for teaching children about cultural celebrations and family traditions. I do not know a lot about Hanukkah so this was even fun for me to read! I bought it from work and can't wait to use it with my students one day soon!

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute story full of excitement for the celebration of Hanukkah. Includes holiday specific vocabulary.

[Therese Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

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A festive start to Hanukkah, enjoyed with McD fries, not latkes, unfortunately.

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[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a cute easy reader Hanukkah book!

[Hope · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read at Kilbourn Public Library storytime w/ Ms Tammy!

[Rosa Cline · Rating 4 out of 5]

(I have this 'tagged' as Christmas although it's a Hanukkah book. No disrespect to those celebrate Hanukkah versus Christmas it's just my way of putting it in a category where I can find it easier.)

This was a very nice book to read. My family celebrates Christmas but I like to read and learn about other cultures and customs. And now sharing that with my 4 year old granddaughter. This was a basic level 2 book. But was very nice learning about this holiday. They did a good job at teaching us the items that are used and why they are used and 'when' Hanukkah is. At the beginning of the book for beginning readers is a 'glossary' of words that are used and what they mean.

[carrietracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't rate a lot of easy readers because generally there's nothing to say about them. This was very basic, nothing you'd really want to sit and read aloud with your child. But I think it would be really exciting for a beginning reader who wanted to be able to read a Hanukkah story ALL BY THEMSELVES. So if that's your goal, this is a LOT better than I'd hoped. It actually contains a small amount of info about the holiday which was a surprise to me. I figured it would be all latke, dreidel, menorah and not bother with the important religious bits.