The Old Toy Chest by Esther Himelstein
“Bunny,” she said, “we are only stuffed animals. How much noise can we possibly make jumping up and down?…”
Cheeky, Wee-Wee, Bunny, and the other stuffed animals long for the days when Feivel and Shprintze used to play with them. Forgotten in an attic, they hatch a daring plan to reunite with their owners and make a surprising discovery that will forever change their destiny. Presented in a bilingual Yiddish/English edition with charming illustrations, this parable, which teaches the value of not discarding well-worn treasures, will delight readers young and old.
Esther Himelstein (Author) is a Yiddish and English poet, short story and children’s book writer. She grew up in a Yiddish-speaking home and ever since studying Yiddish at Columbia University’s Uriel Weinreich Program, she has found her passion: the Yiddish language. Her poetry has been published in Vidervuks: A New Generation of Yiddish Writers (1989) and several English-language journals and publications. Her first Yiddish children’s book, Dos Kleyne Vekerl (The Little Alarm Clock), appeared in 1997. This is her second children’s book in Yiddish.
Tanya Panova (Illustrator) is a book illustrator with a background in linguistics. She collaborates with the Yiddish Book Center’s Wexler Oral History Project and teaches Yiddish in Germany where she lives. The Old Toy Chest is her first experience combining her two passions – Yiddish and book illustration.