SUBSCRIBE
SUBSCRIBE
SLJ Blog Network +
  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
  • Pearl's & Ruby's
  • Politics in Practice
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Yarn
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About/Contact
  • Fusenews
  • Reviews
  • Librarian Previews
  • Best Books
    • Top 100
    • Best Books of 2022
    • Best Books of 2021
    • Best Books of 2020
    • Best Books of 2019
    • Best Books of 2018
    • Best Books of 2017
    • Best Books of 2016
    • Best Books of 2015
    • Best Books of 2014
    • Best Books of 2013
  • Fuse 8 n’ Kate
  • Videos
  • Press Release Fun

December 18, 2017 by Betsy Bird

Fuse 8 n’ Kate: Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins by Eric Kimmel, ill. Trina Schart Hyman

December 18, 2017 by Betsy Bird   1 comments

HershelHanukkahSo Kate asked me to pull out a classic children’s book that was also a Hanukkah book this week. A tricky proposition but by no means an impossible one. Today’s selection is a Caldecott Honor title that has been performed by and read to children for years. You might debate the degree to which this book is part of the cultural zeitgeist, but that shiny silver sticker on the cover means that it is certainly one of the only (THE only?) Hanukkah books to win a Caldecott anything. Christmas books win all the time. Jewish holidays? Not so much. Here then is a sickly Kate and a very well Betsy talking up the book of the season.

Listen to the whole show here on Soundcloud or download it through iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, or your preferred method of podcast selection.

Source Notes:

– Curious listeners should check out Marjorie Ingall’s piece in Tablet Magazine Judah Maccabee Versus the Anti-Vaxxers: How a Hanukkah-themed children’s book became the target of conspiracy theorists online. Love everything she writes. Heck, read her Best Jewish Children’s Books of 2017 list of the year. She finds the goods.

SCROLL TO KEEP READING THIS POST

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

– Read the Publishers Weekly piece A Haunting Anniversary ‘Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins’ Turns 25 to get the true inside peek into the book.

– Remember that old television show Jim Henson’s Storyteller:  Well you can see the similarities to Hershel in this 1988 story The Soldier and Death. Please note that Hershel was written in 1985, long before this version came out.

– Same kid?

Hershel5

Hershel7

– The candles do indeed burn down a bit.

Hershel3

– Somehow I was picturing the Goblin King to be a little more Bowie, a little less Groot. Or is it Night on Bald Mountain? You be the judge.

Goblin King

Hershel8

Groot

Groot

Bald Mountain fellow

NightBaldMountain

– Webbed talons. How did she make such excellent webbed talons?

Hershel6

– Paging Stephen Gammell  . . .

Hershel9

– I am pleased to announce that, in fact, there has never been an Eight Crazy Nights picture book. Which, honestly, is kind of weird at this point.

– See? Cricket Magazine, man. It’s all thanks to them.

Hershel2

– Ah, Trina. Here is where you can get more info on what she used to sneak into her books, including both the gravestone and the witch’s table. Here’s the table. You can just barely make out the problem on the edge below the witch.

WitchTable

And, as I mentioned in the piece, this is her ex.

SnowWhiteQueen

– The text above Hershel’s head.

Hershel1

– Yay! Drunk History is back for Season Five!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hF-0Y6djAts

– Again, love the Stranger Things Season Two parody done by Sesame Street.

Filed under: Fuse 8 n' Kate

SHARE:

Read or Leave Comments
Fuse 8 n' KateHanukkahHershel and the Hanukkah Goblins

About Betsy Bird

Betsy Bird is currently the Collection Development Manager of the Evanston Public Library system and a former Materials Specialist for New York Public Library. She has served on Newbery, written for Kirkus, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person. Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of EPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. Follow her on BlueSky at: @fuse8.bsky.social

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

ADVERTISEMENT

SLJ Blog Network

100 Scope Notes

Name That LEGO Book Cover! (#63)

by Travis Jonker

Good Comics for Kids

Paw & Order: The Grilled Cheese Caper | Review

by Esther Keller

Heavy Medal

Nine More Titles: May Mock Newbery 2026 Suggestion Titles

by Emily Mroczek-Bayci

Politics in Practice

When Book Bans are a Form of Discrimination, What is the Path to Justice?

by John Chrastka

Teen Librarian Toolbox

Boost teen reading with digital comics – start with these 5 recs! (Sponsored)

by Karen Jensen, MLS

The Yarn

Pably Cartaya visits The Yarn

by Colby Sharp

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Articles on SLJ

35 Picture Book Fiction Series Perfect for Comfort and Discovery

39 of the Latest and Greatest Graphic Novel Fiction Series

8 Manga Fiction Series with Emotion, Drama, and All the Feels

My School Visit was Cancelled. I Fought Back and Won. | Opinion

Summer Reading: Publishers Focus on Fun

SPONSORED

About Betsy Bird

Betsy Bird is currently the Collection Development Manager of the Evanston Public Library system and a former Materials Specialist for New York Public Library. She has served on Newbery, written for Kirkus, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person. Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of EPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. Follow her on BlueSky at: @fuse8.bsky.social

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. marjorie says

    December 18, 2017 at 5:19 pm

    Ahahaha, CookieGorgon in the Stranger Things parody!

ADVERTISEMENT

Archives

  • External Links

    • A Fuse #8 Production Reviews
  • Follow This Blog

    Enter your email address below to receive notifications of new blog posts by email.

    This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

    This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

    Primary Sidebar

    • News & Features
    • Reviews+
    • Technology
    • School Libraries
    • Public Libraries
    • Blogs
    • Classroom
    • Diversity
    • People
    • Job Zone

    Reviews+

    • Book Lists
    • Best Books 2024
    • 2024 Stars So Far
    • Media
    • Reference
    • Series Made Simple
    • Tech
    • Review for SLJ
    • Review Submissions

    SLJ Blog Network

    • 100 Scope Notes
    • A Fuse #8 Production
    • Good Comics for Kids
    • Heavy Medal
    • Pearls & Rubys
    • Politics in Practice
    • Teen Librarian Toolbox
    • The Yarn

    Resources

    • Reasons to Love Libraries
    • 2025 Youth Media Awards
    • Defending the Canon:SLJ & NCTE Review 15 Banned Classics
    • Refreshing the Canon Booklist
    • School Librarian of the Year
    • Read Free Poster
    • Mathical Book Prize Collection Development Awards
    • Research
    • White Papers / Case Studies

    Events & PD

    • In-Person Events
    • Online Courses
    • Virtual Events
    • Webcasts
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Subscribe
    • Media Inquiries
    • Newsletter Sign Up
    • Content Submissions
    • Data Privacy
    • Terms of Use
    • Terms of Sale
    • FAQs
    • Diversity Policy
    • Careers at MSI


    COPYRIGHT © 2025


    COPYRIGHT © 2025