Reach for the Stars: A Little Torah's Journey - Hardcover

Rouss, Sylvia A.; Joseph, Joachim

9781930143821: Reach for the Stars: A Little Torah's Journey

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1930143826 ISBN 13: 9781930143821

Publisher: Simcha Media Group, 1800

The story of the miniature Torah that was taken by Israeli astronaut, Ilan Ramon, aboard the ill-fated Columbia Space Shuttle.

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About the Author:

Sylvia Rouss is the author of a dozen children’s titles and won the "2002 National Jewish Book Award" for The Littlest Pair. Her other bestselling titles include The Littlest Candlesticks, The Littlest Frog and Tali's Jerusalem Scrapbook.

From School Library Journal:

Grade 3-5–At once a compelling true story of spirit and survival and a loving tribute to a national hero, this book recounts the travels of a small Torah that passed from the hands of a dedicated rabbi to a young Holocaust survivor, and finally to Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon, who carried it into space on the doomed space shuttle Columbia. The book's deceptively juvenile title, picture-book format, and heartwarming "reach for the stars" refrain suggest a young audience, as do the fictionalized dialogue, richly hued illustrations and photographs, and starry sky border. A positive spirit pervades even the bleakest moments, as when the rabbi's wife tells their children that the yellow star they must wear on their clothes is a sign that God is near. Yet this is a book better suited to older children able to grasp a story that moves through some very difficult terrain, including the targeting of Jews by the Nazis, the separation of a close-knit family, life and death in a concentration camp, and the tragic demise of Columbia's crew. With an introduction by Joachim Joseph highlighting the life of Ramon, this is a tale worth telling, and, as with Karen Levine's Hana's Suitcase (Second Story, 2002), reveals the power of a single object to transform many lives.–Teri Markson, Stephen S. Wise Temple Elementary School, Los Angeles
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