CHILDREN’S BOOKS

VGOODNIGHT GOLDA: A handbook for brave Jewish girls (and their mighty friends) by Batya Bricker with Ilana Stein (Batya Bricker Book Projects, £16.95) is a biographical treasury of courageous Jewish women, from biblical suffragettes, the daughters of Zelophedad, to present-day icons such as Black Israeli social-media activist Ashager Araro, in fields as diverse as astrophysics, Bollywood stardom and Shabbat hospitality. There are familiar heroines, such as the titular Golda Meir, and less well known, such as rabbinical leader and Iraqi poet Asenat Barzani — with space for readers to list their own role models. Plus brilliantly coloured illustrations by Mary-Anne van der Byl and Ronel Pienaar to give it all contemporary flair. Age 10 up.

Michael Rosen’s Please Write Soon (Scholastic, £12.99), in partnership with the Royal British Legion), is based on his father’s cousin’s correspondence. Solly, a British evacuee in 1939, exchanges letters with Polish cousin Bernie, who endures a Russian labour camp before joining the Army. While the story is told in a child-accessible way (milking cows sounds like peeing in a bucket; a bear is adopted by the Army), it does include some darker wartime incidents. Michael Foreman’s characterful drawings in shades of grey with touches of poppy-red are the perfect accompaniment. Age seven to 11.

Eliza Davis’s favourite novelist upset her with his portrayal of Jews. So she wrote to him, imploring him to change. Dear Mr Dickens, by Nancy Churnin, illustrated by Bethany Stancliffe (Albert Whitman & Co, £12.99), for age seven to 11, tells how Fagin’s creator was persuaded to invent a more sympathetic Jewish character. Churnin’s picture-book is also a fable to inspire young readers to speak up to bring about change. Centred on the book, the Dickens Museum in London has launched a learning programme for key stage two, including in-person and virtual museum tours, virtual author Q&A and follow-up projects. Booking now.

Gefilte fish and challah dough played a surprising part in inspiring architect Frank Gehry — Frank Who Liked to Build (Kar-Ben, £7.99). As well as providing these haimishe insights into the architect’s background, Deborah Blumenthal engages readers by focusing on Gehry’s child-like enjoyment of shapes and structures. Her imaginative text is complemented by Maria Brzozowska’s colourful, fluid illustrations and by adventurous use of graphics. Ages five to 11, with a more detailed afterword for older readers.