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Saralee Siegel
Starlight Soup: A Sukkot Story
Searching for a new recipe to welcome Sukkot guests to her family's restaurant Saralee uses her super-nose to smell her way to the stars. But her magical Starlight Soup turns out to be a taste-bud disaster. Now what? Welcome back Saralee!
--Kirkus Reviews
--Kirkus Reviews
128 pages, Hardcover
Published August 1, 2021
About the author
Elana Rubinstein
6 books9 followersElana Rubinstein is the author of the Saralee Siegel books, a chapter book series for children ages seven to ten. Her first book, Once Upon an Apple Cake, was a PJ Library selection book and a National Jewish Book Awards Finalist. Elana has a master's degree in early childhood education from American Jewish University. She lives in Northern Virginia with her family!
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 27, 2021
Always cute with an inspirational backstory
September 11, 2021
This is a really cute book about Sukkot, and a tasty pot of soup, made from starlight.
When each person eats the soup, it turns into their absolute favorite soup flavor, which was all fine, and dandy, until the flavor of the starlight soup, grew more intense in everyone's mouths.
A rush to find a cure for the permanent flavor that had imprisoned the towns tongues was found in a surprising and unlikely way.
this is a fun book for children, and I think that it would be a great discussion starter with a group of children, after reading this book.
Perfect for cultural studies, at a young age, and I bet many children could think of some pretty funny cures for their tongues, and some great handmade art to go along with it.
There is so much that you could do with this book, in a classroom setting, or for Homeschool.
When each person eats the soup, it turns into their absolute favorite soup flavor, which was all fine, and dandy, until the flavor of the starlight soup, grew more intense in everyone's mouths.
A rush to find a cure for the permanent flavor that had imprisoned the towns tongues was found in a surprising and unlikely way.
this is a fun book for children, and I think that it would be a great discussion starter with a group of children, after reading this book.
Perfect for cultural studies, at a young age, and I bet many children could think of some pretty funny cures for their tongues, and some great handmade art to go along with it.
There is so much that you could do with this book, in a classroom setting, or for Homeschool.
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June 10, 2025I picked this up because I needed a Jewish comfort read. Thanks to the PJ Library and Grinspoon Foundation.
The best soup I have ever had was carrot soup (aside frommy grandmother's matzah ball soup, of course), which is funny because was thinking about and remembering it about a week before coming across this book. Bonus points for the recipe in the back.
The best soup I have ever had was carrot soup (aside frommy grandmother's matzah ball soup, of course), which is funny because was thinking about and remembering it about a week before coming across this book. Bonus points for the recipe in the back.
February 3, 2022
I loved this book. It's a little slow going at the beginning, but read on because it's about wonderful enchanting magic, a young person finding their own solution to a problem, and most of all about friendship and kindness. It's beautiful.
January 31, 2024
I think my 8-year-old twins and I liked the Rosh Hashanah time travel story-line (from this series) a bit better, but we still had a great time with this book and never wanted to stop reading!
October 6, 2025
Imagine a pot of magical soup where each person tastes their own favorite flavor. Author, Elana Rubinstein has created a fun chapter book series about a spunky, smart Jewish girl with a colorful extended family. In the first book, Once Upon an Apple Cake: A Rosh Hashanah Story she introduced Saralee Siegal, a girl with a super-nose who could sniff out any scent from miles away. Saralee lives with an extended family of grandparents, aunts and uncle and a cousin above the family restaurant. Zadie is the head chef, and Saralee with her super-sniffer is his assistant. Rubinstein portrays a loving bond between the two. However, each character has their own unique quirks and Jennifer Naalchigar's detailed grey tone illustrations bring the zany family to life.
In this book, Zadie and Sara Lee want something different for the Seigel House Sukkot menu. Since a sukkah roof is made of branches to let in the starlight, she wants to make a starlight soup. When she actually creates a magical soup that lights up like the starlit sky and tastes like anyone's favorite flavor, the whole town shows up. But nothing great is ever perfect, and when things take a turn for the worse, it is up to Saralee to come up with a solution. There are plenty of holiday picture books for the preschoolers. This book is perfect for the older youngsters who want to celebrate Sukkot with a good book. I recommend the whole series.
In this book, Zadie and Sara Lee want something different for the Seigel House Sukkot menu. Since a sukkah roof is made of branches to let in the starlight, she wants to make a starlight soup. When she actually creates a magical soup that lights up like the starlit sky and tastes like anyone's favorite flavor, the whole town shows up. But nothing great is ever perfect, and when things take a turn for the worse, it is up to Saralee to come up with a solution. There are plenty of holiday picture books for the preschoolers. This book is perfect for the older youngsters who want to celebrate Sukkot with a good book. I recommend the whole series.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews