A Guest Post from Author Jane Sutton (and a book trailer too!)

It's hard to pick the perfect gift, and Esther the Gorilla's choices seem all wrong at first. But it all gets sorted out when she invites her animal friends to a joyful Hanukkah party. For a sneak peek, check out the book trailer!

In today's guest blog post, author Jane Sutton talks about what it was like to have illustrator Andy Rowland bring her book to life:

 

"As a picture book author, when I turn my story over to the illustrator, I feel the way I did when I left my infant with a babysitter for the first time. Would the illustrator treat my story/my baby with care? What if the illustrator was careless and oblivious to the story’s charms? Or spoiled it with busy-ness? Or didn’t “get” the characters’ personalities?

Waiting to see the sketches can feel like sitting through a T-ball game prolonged by a series of rain delays.

But in the case of Esther's Hanukkah Disaster, the illustrator—Andy Rowland—treated my story about the shopping-challenged Esther’ the Gorilla with exquisite TLC. Every picture is adorable, with rich details that are wonderful to explore. To my delight, Andy didn’t just bring out the humor in the text, but added visual humor not in the text. One of Esther’s file folders is labeled “boring paperwork,” and the shopping list on her fridge lists bananas four times. Most important to me was that, like a good caretaker, the illustrator was sensitive to the main character’s emotions. When Esther is sad, she looks really sad. And when she’s happy because her Hanukkah party is so joyful, Andy has her long gorilla arms clapping over her head, an infectiously toothy grin spread across her face.

Yes, my story/my baby was definitely in good hands. I needn’t have worried…well, I guess I did need to, since worrying happens to be in my nature."

 

Q & A with Jane Sutton

Why did you want to become an author?

I've always enjoyed writing. In elementary school, I would turn an assignment to "write a paragraph using all the spelling words" into a three-act play. An essay I wrote in fifth grade is entitled "A Criticism of Humanity on Behalf of Ducks." In college, a sociology professor assigned us to "do something you always wanted to do and keep a journal on it." I wrote a series of children's stories, and that's when I knew I wanted to write children's books.

Do you have any advice for future authors?

Write, write, write. Keep a notebook with you at all times (well, maybe not in the shower) because you never know when you'll get an idea for a story.

Where did you get the inspiration for Esther's Hanukkah Disaster?

I used to tell my children a version of this story, and it gradually evolved into a book.

How do you hope your book will impact the Jewish life of a child?

At first Esther purchases gifts because they appeal to her, not really thinking about the recipient. Her eventual understanding encourages the Jewish value of thinking about others - compassion and empathy. Also, the characters express clearly that the significance of Hanukkah is more important than the gifts. Finally, even though these are anthropomorphic animals, they enjoy rich Jewish traditions.

Anything else you would like to share with readers?

I didn't want to grow up. I figured being a kid was a good deal: I got free food and I didn't have to go to work. When I realized I did have to get older after all, I promised myself that I would always remember what it was like to be a child. Being a children's book author is a way of fulfilling that promise to myself.

Jane Sutton grew up in Roslyn, Long Island, where she began writing stories and poems at a young age. She graduated from Brandeis University with a B.A. in Comparative Literature. In addition to writing books, Jane is a writing tutor and teaches a community education class for adults about how to write for kids. She, her husband, and grown children live in the Boston area.

You can get a copy of Esther's Hanukkah Disaster here!

Ryan Braun: Can He Ever Be a Role Model?

This fall, Kar-Ben released the second revised edition of Jewish Sports Stars: Athletic Heroes of the Past and Present. The book cover was originally set to feature Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman and Major League Baseball slugger and 2011 MVP Ryan Braun.

On July 22, 2013, however, MLB suspended Braun for 65 games for his involvement with the Biogenesis clinic, which was known to have provided illegal performance enhancing drugs to several MLB players, as well as for "conduct detrimental to baseball."

As a result, Kar-Ben chose to remove Braun from the book's cover. Said Kar-Ben publisher Joni Sussman, "While Ryan Braun is a very talented baseball player and we were originally excited to have a contemporary sports figure of his talent and stature with such a strong identification to his Jewish heritage on the cover, there was no question that, after the steroids scandal surfaced, his image was tarnished and he was no longer appropriate to serve as a role model for Jewish kids."

Braun's image has been replaced with a photo of Sandy Koufax, one of the best pitchers in Major League Baseball history.

The revised cover

Although Braun's entry in the book remains, the following addendum was added inside the book's back cover: "Shortly after the publication of this book, Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun (pages 6-8) was suspended for 65 games, the remainder of the 2013 Major League Baseball season, for violating the league's performance-enhancing drug policy."

Considering his recent mistakes, can Ryan Braun ever become a suitable role model for Jewish children? What Jewish role models are the best for very athletically-minded youth?