Hanukkah with Noshy Boy and Friends by Anne-Marie Baila Asner; Los Angeles: Matzah Ball Books © 2013; ISBN 9780975-362952; $6.95
By Donald H. Harrison
SAN DIEGO – In a style reminiscent of Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs of Disney fame, this book, reissued for Hanukkah, features a series of unidimensional characters with Yiddish names: Noshy Boy, Kvetchy Boy, Shmutzy Girl, Klutzy Boy, Shluffy Girl, Shleppy Boy, Kibbitzy Girl, and Keppy Girl.
They all gather at Bubbe’s and Zaide’s (grandma’s and grandpa’s) house to hear the story of the original Chanukah and to feast on latkes and play dreidel.
Author Asner cleverly works into her 22-page story derivatives of such Yiddish words as noshing (snacking), kvetching (complaining), schmutz (dirt, mess); klutz ((awkward person); shluff (sleep); schlep (carry), kibbitz (joke, offer advice), and keppy (child’s head, intelligent child).
The advantage of the story is that it teaches young children some Yiddish words. The possible disadvantage is that it could lead to stereotyping people.
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Donald H. Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted via donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com