Yuvi’s Candy Tree by Leslie Simpson - ADVISABLE

Simpson, Leslie.  Yuvi’s Candy Tree.  Illustrated by Janice Lee Porter.  $7.95 Kar-Ben Publishing, 2011.  PICTURE BOOK.  Content, G. Yuvi is a five year old Jewish girl who has fled Ethiopia by foot with her grandmother.  They face robbers while starving and thirsty, but eventually make it to Israel where they find relief.  This is a fictional story based on a true story about a young girls experience during Operation Moses, a campaign to return Ethiopian Jews to Israel.  There are a few words that would need to be explained to younger readers, but it is an effective and moving story with beautiful illustrations.  EL (K-3)-ADVISABLE.  Reviewer, C. Peterson.