Vali Mintzi

Forced to take shelter when their Syrian city is plagued with bombings, young Nour and her cousin begin to bravely build a secret underground library.

"The inimitable Jane Yolen has teamed up with Barbara Diamond Goldin (a prolific author in her own right) to retell Bible stories from the point of view of twelve women (in nine chapters, as some come in pairs). After each story, there is a reflection "imagine" piece written from the voice of each woman (written by Barbara) and a poem about her (written by Jane). Intermixed with the main text are sidebars called "midrash" in the singular or "midrashim"...

Osnat was born five hundred years ago—at a time when almost everyone believed in miracles, but very few believed that girls should learn to read. Yet Osnat's father was a great scholar whose house was filled with books. And she convinced him to teach her. Then she in turn grew up to teach others, becoming a wise scholar in her own right, the world's first female rabbi! Some say Osnat performed miracles—like healing a dove who had been...