Accom­pa­nied by bright, live­ly pic­tures and lilt­ing rhymes with per­fect, read-it-aloud meter, this sweet book reminds read­ers of the joys of the crisp apple. Jew­ish hol­i­days are con­nect­ed to the fruit year-round: Sim­chat Torah with can­died apples on a stick, apple­sauce to accom­pa­ny Hanukkah latkes, charoset made with chopped apples on a Passover Seder plate, blintzes with apple fill­ing on Shavuot, and, of course, apples and hon­ey to sym­bol­ize a sweet New Year. Char­ac­ters plant­i­ng a new tree is a hint to the Israeli hol­i­day of Tu B’shvat, known as the New Year for trees. It rep­re­sents the cycle of life; hol­i­days con­tin­ue to be cel­e­brat­ed around the year, trees keep bloom­ing, and new ones will be plant­ed as once-chil­dren car­ry on the tra­di­tion, gen­er­a­tion after generation.

This charm­ing pic­ture book is as enjoy­able and refresh­ing as a juicy apple, excit­ing young read­ers about a deli­cious addi­tion to Jew­ish hol­i­day customs.