From the evening of April 22 to April 30, Jews across the world partake in the annual celebration of Passover, a 3,300-year-old story of freedom and sacrifice, commemorating their liberation from slavery in Egypt. It’s one of the most widely celebrated holidays in the Jewish calendar, and PJ Library, one of the leading resources for Jewish families across North America, offers up dozens of ways to help celebrate, whether you need a refresher on a few traditions, you just want to learn more about the history of the holiday, or you’re celebrating Passover for the very first time.
Click over to PJ Library’s Passover Hub to find kid-friendly ways to tell the Passover story along with downloadable activities to keep children engaged during their family’s seder (traditional Passover meal). While there you can also find seasonal recipes, book lists, and a step-by-step video playlist where kids can learn (or refresh) some serious seder skills. All of these resources are guaranteed to make your Passover as meaningful and family-focused as possible. Some highlights include A Passover FAQ for Kids which offers answers to 10 common questions kids ask, along with easy answers for grown-ups to refer to on the spot, along with Passover Printables and a special “Who Knows About Passover” card game.
And what would a Jewish holiday be without food, an important component of nearly every celebration! This year, PJ Library invites families to taste the freedom of Passover with Matzah Mania offering a trio of fun and easy matzah recipes including a homemade recipe for the unleavened bread that’s holy roll-y DIY fun in less than 18 minutes, a matzah grazing board and more. Other recipes sure to be enjoyed by the whole family including a delectable fire-roasted tomato soup with cheddar matzah crisps and matzah bruschetta which is a snap to make and works as a great snack, lunch, or side!
Throughout the 2024 holiday, PJ Library has also partnered with Streit’s, and be featured on their iconic matzo boxes. For many, enjoying PJ Library books is as baked into family tradition as eating Streit’s Matzos on Passover. For others who’ve gone without the free stories and activities PJ Library sends every month for zero dough (leavened or otherwise), they can now be led out of the desert thanks to the opportunity to sign up for a subscription on every box of Streit’s Matzos. So, in addition to searching for the afikomen this year, families can now search for the PJ Library logo on Streit’s Matzos boxes in supermarkets across North America or on streitsmatzos.com.
For centuries, families have used a Passover guidebook called the Haggadah, to tell the story of the holiday and pass down the traditions and lessons of the story to their children, relatives, and friends (the Hebrew word haggadah literally means “telling”). One of the leading sources for family-friendly Haggadahs across the United States and beyond – nearly 50,000 families have said this was their first Haggadah, and PJ Library has shipped nearly one million Haggadahs to over 200,000 families over the past six years — PJ Library will once again offer anyone celebrating the holiday a downloadable PDF version of IN EVERY GENERATION: A PJ LIBRARY FAMILY HAGGADAH. Aside from the traditional prayers and readings, this interactive guide to the Passover seder offers up specially curated videos of songs and blessing and explanations that help make the holiday a fun, engaging and family-friendly experience. For those interested in purchasing paperback versions, both the regular PJ Library Family Haggadah ($7.99) and a Large Print Edition ($10.99) are available for sale on the PJ Library storefront on Amazon.
Finally, PJ Library curates age specific books for its subscribers from birth through age 8. Last year children ages 3 to 4 received a delightful spin on a classic Yiddish folktale “In Our Teeny Tiny Matzah House”, written by Bill Wurtzel and illustrated by Claire Wurtzel (Apple & Honey Press) in which Kitzel the cat can’t hear himself meow, as his house is too noisy. But it’s about to become noisier because Passover is about to begin! And, kids ages 6 to 7 were sent “A Persian Passover” (Kalaniot Books), set in 1950’s Iran, written by Etan Basseri and illustrated by Rashin Kheiriyeh, which finds Ezra and Roza looking forward to celebrating the holiday until they have an unfortunate mishap with the community matzah baking oven. If families don’t want to miss out on getting books each month, including for future holidays, they can sign up today.
About PJ Library
PJ Library, a global program available in more than 35 countries, provides Jewish families with free high-quality children’s books and other resources that foster a deeper connection with Jewish life. Over 18 years, PJ Library has provided 50 million books to kids ages 0-12 worldwide. It is a program of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation who partners with local Jewish organizations to fund PJ Library and make it available in their community. Learn more and sign up at pjlibrary.org.
About P. J. Library
About PJ Library
A free program of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, PJ Library sends engaging storybooks and activities that provide fun and easy ways for families to connect with Jewish life. PJ Library’s high-quality books have become everyday favorites of kids from birth through age 12, whether the stories serve as first introductions to Jewish values and culture or inspire families to create new Jewish traditions at home. More than 680,000 books are delivered to families worldwide each month. To find out more, visit pjlibrary.org.