Written by: Lina Schwarz

Illustrated by: Yong Chen

For ages: 4 years and up

Language: English

Topics Covered: Family, Love, Religion, Jewish Culture & Traditions, Problem-Solving, Community. 

Summary: It is almost Rosh Hashanah and Harry is missing his mother, a talented trumpeter, who is out of town playing a concert. Even more unfortunate is Harry’s father, who always blows the shofar at their synagogue, is sick and can’t play it this year.

When Harry’s mother returns, he gets an idea. She is the one that blows the shofar at their temple to ring in the new year, and Harry thinks maybe it is time for him to start to practice the shofar as well!

This book, much like Sky-High Sukkah is an introduction to a Jewish holiday. It explains the importance of the holiday and the ram’s horn shofar as a significant piece of that. While Harry’s mom is not named in the book and several other adult male characters are, having a female character be able to perform an important honor for the holiday proceedings is a breath of fresh air.

About the Author & the Illustrator:

Author Lina Schwarz keeps a very low profile online and we can’t find anything out them!  If you have any leads, let us know!

Yong Chen is the illustrator for this book! Before Yong Chen immigrated to the United States, he was a high school art instructor and science teacher. After immigrating to the United States in 1989, Yong studied graphic design, painting and illustration in Boston, and earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Massachusetts College of Art and Design and his Master of Fine Arts from the University of Hartford.

Yong is a published author, illustrator and painter. He has illustrated/authored children’s books and children’s magazines. His oil and watercolor paintings have been exhibited in art galleries and museums both in China and United States. He is also a pioneer of teaching painting using online technology for college students and through his website EnjoyingArt.com.