On Purim

As her family sits down to make masks, a young girl knows it's time for Purim, the holiday that celebrates how Queen Esther saved the Jewish people. It's time for making hamantashen, pastries filled with poppy seeds and honey. Time to place these pastries in homemade paper gift baskets with candy and fruit. Time for the Purim carnival, for playing games and watching the Purim parade. And, of course, time to put on their new costumes and masks.

But this year the girl can't help but wonder why they wear masks on Purim. As her family acts out the Purim story, she discovers not only the story behind the masks, but the place of God in their lives.

Cathy Goldberg Fishman's gentle text, illuminated by Melanie W. Hall's warm, colorful paintings, evokes the mysteries and joys of the Purim holiday.