Rounding a year in New Zealand, here are my top three surprises about living here…
1. Coffee. New Zealand is small and remote and I feel that in a lot of ways, but somehow or another, they win at coffee. Every little village, every city alley, will have a tiny cafe with baristas who whip up absolutely banger cups of lattes, cappuccinos and flat whites. I've come to the point that I expect a delicate heart or leaf latte art with every $3 cup of coffee I order. It took six months before hubby and I got a "bad" cup of coffee and we reacted as if someone had kicked our dog, it was that unexpected and upsetting.
2. Fitness. Kiwis are casually the fittest, toughest people I've ever met. I say casually because they aren't decked out in high end athleisure wear. They aren't ripped and glistening. But in their raggy t-shirts and loose pants, they will out climb you, out run you, out cold swim you, and out bike you. Anywhere else, if I tell folks I went for a 15km walk over the weekend, they'll be slightly impressed. Here, people will hike 15km for an after work, pre-dinner airing out. I met a 60-some year old lady on a hike, she had a bad hip and was taking it easy, so she was only hiking 20km that day, instead of 25km. My 16 year-old had a school field trip where her entire class was expected to hike up and down a semi-active volcano in a day. 22km. Public school. No one thought that was weird. (Also, she loved it.)
3. Clean (air, water, food). New Zealand's air is so clean, its air quality monitoring stations set the baseline for the world. The air is so clean that hubby's asthma has cleared up. Their forests edge right into their towns and cities, and there are hundreds of kilometers of gorgeous forest paths to hike in every town and village we've visited. On most hikes I feel like I've fallen through time. There are no signs of human civilization (other than the fact that the trails are so well maintained.) The water is so clean people swim in Wellington Harbor and orcas are spotted. Cattle graze on fresh grass making their butter, milk and cheese so good and creamy. Their basic, entry-level yogurt is better than twice-as-expensive gourmet yogurt I've had in the States. But none of this is some happy accident. Kiwis highly prioritize their wild spaces and they highly value time spent outdoors, and it shows.
If you've lived in a different country than the one you grew up in, what surprised you the most?
Top 10 books for Middle School and High School libraries about Israel or with Jewish protagonists
I was giving a talk this weekend and a Jewish student mentioned that when she looked for books about Israel or with Jewish protagonists, her public school library only had books with a Palestinian perspective and books about the Holocaust.
Librarians mean well, but they order the books that are on their radar, that are being talked about and celebrated, and that support learning units. They have to keep track of a lot of different topics and they can miss things.
If your child's school library (or your public library) seems like it has a hole on the shelf, here are my top ten books for middle school and high school libraries that discuss Israel and/or have fun plots with Jewish protagonists that aren't set during World War 2. You can suggest titles and if their budget allows, librarians are happy to take recommendations from their community.
(I also recommend these for any home library!)
NON FICTION:
*Start Up Nation, by Dan Senor and Saul Singer
(I love this book because Israel is so much more than the Palestinian conflict. It has an outsized contribution to the world of high tech, medical innovation, agriculture, and science.)
https://bookshop.org/.../start-up.../f345a426b775daba...
*Israel: A Simple Guide to the most misunderstood country in the world by Noa Tishby
(Written in a casual, breezy style. Easy to read, easy to follow along. A great primer about Israel for people who know nothing about it. I gift this book to every bar/bat mitzvah I attend)
https://bookshop.org/.../israel-a.../8fa81a1822b749da...
*Israel: A concise history of a Nation Reborn by Daniel Gordis
(This is slightly more advanced reading, better for high school than middle school. I've never read a complete history this tightly written.)
https://bookshop.org/.../israel-a.../47a27c6ca89438c9...
*The Genius of Israel by Dan Senor and Saul Singer
(Yes, another book by these guys. Israel keeps landing on the happiest countries list. Why? Because of its tightly woven, supportive communities that genuinely look out for one another.)
https://bookshop.org/.../the-genius.../2e5e7aa028e124f7...
*No Room for Small Dreams: Courage, Imagination, and the Making of Modern Day Israel by Shimon Perez
(Inspiring and hopeful final message from one of Israel's founding fathers.)
https://bookshop.org/.../no-room-for.../34167950ce1b1563...
FICTION:
*Spinning Silver by Naomi Novak
(A retelling of the Rumpelstilskin story. The Jewish moneylender is the moral heroine. Weaves elements of Russian folklore with fantastic writing.)
https://bookshop.org/.../spinning.../8e565094e6b2618c...
*Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack
(Fantasy and mayhem in 10th century Europe as the only daughter of a Jewish family heads off on an epic adventure.)
https://bookshop.org/.../anya-and-the.../674b06fb07003e78...
*The Six Day Hero by Tammar Stein
(Had to include my book, haha. Set in Israel in 1967, a blend of history, adventure, and family ties. I wrote this when I couldn’t find any novels set in Israel for kids. You’re welcome.)
https://bookshop.org/.../the-six-day.../65bd2d10fb09f8aa...
*Beni's War by Tammar Stein
(A stand alone companion, set in Israel in 1973. It won the Middle East Book Award, a tale of 3 brothers, coming of age.)
https://bookshop.org/.../beni-s-war.../2c7c591c8c69aa66...
*The Hired Girl by Lauran Amy Schlitz
(The protagonist isn't Jewish, but it's a beautiful depiction of a religious Jewish family as seen through the eyes of an outsider. Set in the early 1900s Baltimore, it's both an unusual time period and location for your typical middle grade/high school fare yet manages to capture a very essential slice of Jewish American life.)
Grateful
Hello dear ones,
I’ve been thinking about the five languages of love and how our society has focused on gift-giving as the most authentic one to show you care. (Have you heard of this theory? There are 5 main ways people show each other that they love them: kind words, acts of service, quality time, physical touch, and giving gifts.) I get that, I mean, no one’s spending their 6-figure marketing budget to tell you to give people back rubs or to put away the laundry. The return on their investment wouldn’t leave their shareholders happy. (Although maybe they would be happier if they were getting back rubs and their boo took the trash without being asked? This bears further thinking…)
Regardless, I love that we have Thanksgiving before launching into the shopping/giving/getting frenzy of December. We can just eat and hang out and maybe even go around the table and say what we’re grateful for before we dig in.
I hope you have a wonderful meal with people you like, and that you remember to use all your languages to show them how much you care.
And since the sixth, previously undiscovered, love language is food, here’s one of my favorite fall recipes to share with you. If you double the recipe and give one away, you’ll be speaking so many languages at one: gift, service, food, and if after you hand it over you also give them a hug and tell them you love them, you’ll be speaking in touch and king words too. A polyglot in love. What a beautiful thing.
Thank you for reading my books!
Tammar
Pumpkin-Chocolate Chip Bread
1 can pumpkin puree
1/2 cup vegetable oil (I’ve used olive oil, avocado oil, coconut oil, literally whatever I have laying around)
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour (I sometimes swap in 1/2 cup whole wheat flour)
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon ginger
3/4 cup chocolate chips
Heat over to 350. Oil a 9-by-5 inch loaf pan, line the bottom with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, mix pumpkin, oil, sugar and vanilla. Mix dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Slowly still the flour mixture into the wet mixture. Add chocolate chips.
Pour into prepared loaf pan. Bake 60-70 minutes. Inserted toothpick should come out clean.
This recipe easily doubles. Make one to keep and one to give away to your favorite neighbor.
Enjoy!