I was invited to review a new product from a company called
Jewish Holidays in a Box. I love this idea. A simple kit for each holiday to help families learn more about the holiday and feel confident and comfortable with their celebrations.
Right now, they only have the Hanukkah Kits to ship, and I received mine over the Thanksgiving weekend.
Inside was:
- a little booklet with a glossary, the story of Chanukah, and some other information
- some dreidels
- Chanukah napkins
- ribbons (for decorating)
- a games packet (bingo, how to play dreidel)
- thank you notes and envelopes
- candle lighting packet with blessings, songs, and a paper menorah card
- CD tutorial
All of the materials are colorful and nicely put together. I really like the Chanukah bingo game - I think my kids will get a kick out of it because frankly, how much dreidel can you play?
The CD tutorial is really quite nice. Ellen's voice is nice and steady, and she tells you how to follow along with the information given, but adds information that makes it worth your while to listen to the CD. It is a calm tutorial of the Hebrew pronounciation, which could be very comforting and encouraging to adults who feel less confident in the blessings.
My only complaint about the whole thing is that there is no Hebrew text anywhere. It seems too bad to offer only transliteration and translation, without the original Hebrew. I know that most of the target audience can't read the Hebrew anyway. But I feel that its presence is important. Also, perhaps parents would learn from this but their kids might go to Hebrew school and be able to read the Hebrew. Aside from this critique, I think the product is a great idea and will make a wonderful addition to family celebrations. (it's perfect to sell in a temple gift shop...)
You can purchase
your own Hanukkah Kit here.
You can win a Hanukkah Kit from Jewish Holidays in a Box!
Here's what you have to do:
1. Go and "like"
Jewish Holidays in a Box on Facebook.
2. Come back here and
leave me a comment telling me that you've done so.
I will choose a winner
by Friday, December 2nd.
(I can't wait to see the rest of the kits, since I think Hanukkah is a holiday that's generally pretty easy to celebrate at home. More complicated or less well-known holidays might be well served by this product!)
Full disclosure: I received a Hanukkah Kit for free from the company. I was not compensated in any way for my review and they didn't tell me what to say.
