The Always Prayer Shawl

Adam is a young Jewish boy in Czarist Russia. When the revolution engulfs his villiage, his family decides to leave their home and start a new life across the ocean. Before Adam embarks on his journey, his grandfather hands the boy his prayer shawl, which was given to him by his own grandfather, whose name was Adam.

The new world brings many changes. Adam and his family move into a small apartment. He learns a new language. His parents find work in a factory. In the midst of all this change, one thing stays the same-the certainty of Adam's name and his prayer shawl. Sheldon Oberman has created a story that unfolds from time past to time present, when Adam, a grandfather himself now, hands the prayer shawl to his own grandson. Ted Lewin has given powerful expression to the author's words with illustrations that linger in the imagination long after the book is closed. Together they have created a simple yet deeply felt picture book about the power of tradition and the passing of generations. It is a picture book that becomes richer with every reading.