Nine Spoons: A Chanukah Story

by Marci Stillerman, Pesach Gerber (Illustrator)

As the last night of Chanukah draws to a close, Oma once again tells her grandchildren the story of the treasured little menorah, "the Children's Menorah, " miraculously created out of self-sacrifice by the women in a Nazi concentration camp. Oma's bunkmate then, Raizel, muses that she could make a menorah out of spoons, but "in the camp, spoons were valued like gold." In the cold, harsh setting of the camp, the procurement of nine spoons is fraught with drama. A kitchen worker steals two rusty spoons from the garbage-despite the threat of punishment if she were to be caught; another woman bargains away her extra scraps of food. The night before Chanukah, the ninth spoon is found, and by twisting them together Raizel fashions a strangely beautiful menorah, and "the children had a Chanukah to remember." As Oma tells the family story, her grandchildren chime in with the parts they know, promising always to remember. Softly colored illustrations depict the joyful contemporary Chanukah celebration, while muted browns and grays dominate the camp scenes of thin-faced prisoners in ragged clothes. An author's note tells that the story is based on an actual incident and that the prisoners would have appeared even more emaciated in reality, but "the book was designed with sensitivity to our very young audience." The respectful and dramatic narrative conveys the bonds of faith and community that rose from despair to forge a sign of hope.

Genres: Jewish, Childrens, History, Holocaust

32 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 1998

Reviews

[Steve Cran · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful little children's book that can be read in an hour. Gives a great over view for children about Jewish culture and the experience of a comunity under duress. Oma the grandmother tells a story of her childhood experience in the concentation camp. Nights before Channukah it is snowing out and the people want to celebrate channukah. A craftswoman who sews clothes and workes well with her hand is given the task. But she needs nine spoons in order to craft her menorah. Spoons are like gold and people do not part with them easily. So the race is on to find the spoons. Will they make it? Along the way miracles occur. People show solidarity by giving up their precious spoons. SOme are found by miracle on the ground and some are pilfered from Nazis. The community is involved but they must do it without the Nazi guards finding out.

A heartwarming story about solidarity and community unity in the face of adversity. Enjoy

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tearjerker of a story when you think of the reality that was the lives of people in death camps during WWII. Let us remember! Let us not allow a repeat of that horrendous time in history as it seems to be happening again. Remember!

[Alex Baugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another one of my favorite Chanukah stories. Every year, when Oma's family celebrates Chanukah, she tells them the story of the Children's Menorah. One winter, in the concentration camp where she was, her bunk-mate Raizel said that Chanukah was coming. Raizel is an artist and wants to find a way to help the children in the barracks celebrate the holiday. She comes up with the idea of making a menorah out of spoons, but spoons were prized possessions among the people in the camp. Nevertheless, in various, often surreptitious ways, nine spoons are collected. Raizel twists the handles around to make a stem, with the bowls of the spoons facing upwards and attaches it to a piece of wood. The spoons are filled with stolen kitchen oil and lit with stolen thread twisted into wicks, and the children in the camp are able to secretly celebrate Chanukah. After the war, Oma had kept the menorah and the children in her family use it every year to remember how this miracle had happened under such dangerous conditions. This was based on a true story, told to the author by the woman survivor who brought the menorah with her after the war when she came to the U.S. This story really demonstrates the victory of light over darkness, at least for 8 days, which is, after all, what Chanukah is all about.

[Jackelyn Raya · Rating 2 out of 5]

One night of Chanukah Oma’ once told the story to her grandchildren the story of ‘’the Children’s Menorah.’’ Raizel, assumed that she would make a menorah for the children out of spoons but she needed nine spoons but in the camp there were valued of gold. The night before Chanukah, the ninth spoon is found and by twisting them together Raizel gathered all the children and they all looked at the beautiful menorah.

[Geo Hendrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

The front of the book tells you it's a chanukah sorry. What makes this story special is it takes place in modern time and grandma tells the story of the most wonderful chanukah. You feel awesome after reading this one. The pictures are beautiful as well.

[Sandra Bornstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holocaust picture books should not be avoided. Instead, they should be chosen carefully. This award winning book (Sidney Taylor Book Award Winner) should be checked out by anyone who wants to introduce the Holocaust to primary school children or older students. It combines historical events with the significance of Chanukah. As the true story is retold, the reader learns about the Jewish principle of mesiras nefesh-self sacrifice for the performance of a good deed. Although the story includes multiple Jewish references, it can easily be shared with a Gentile audience. Stillerman does an excellent job of portraying the horrors of the Holocaust in an age appropriate way.The illustrator, Pesach Gerber, likewise, creates pictures that our suitable for a younger audience.

[Elise Cohen]

"A wonderful, if tear-jerking Chanukah story. A true story as related on behalf of the author's grandmother, this tells of a group of women in a concentration camp who were determined to create a proper Chanukah menorah for their own use and for the sake of the children imprisoned with them. One of them, an artist, decides she can create a kosher menorah of spoons if the others can collect nine precious spoons for her use; together they gather the spoons one by one and are able to create a small light within an extraordinary darkness. For anyone asking the meaning and value of Chanukah, or hoping to add depth to their appreciation, I would recommend running to find this book."

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really beautiful story about how prisoners in a concentration camp sacrificed their precious spoons to make a Chanukah menorah. Years later, one of the survivors tells the story to her grandchildren every Chanukah. This story makes sense as a children's book, unlike other Holocaust-related stories, because it shows the unhappy conditions of the camps without showing the violence. It makes the connection between the importance of faith and tradition, community, the past, and the present. So far, in my survey of Holocaust-related children's books, this is in my top 5 favorites.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

This carefully created picture book provides the ideal introduction to the Holocaust and the Jewish traditions that people continued to observe. The text is well done and beautifully illustrated. I enjoyed this though with a sense of melancholy since I knew that it was true with all its regrettable circumstances. I wish there never had to be a story of such tremendous suffering, but it's still well done for the event it illustrates.