Children of the Book by Ilana Kurshan is a heartfelt memoir that shines with warmth and wisdom. Kurshan, a mother of five in Jerusalem, beautifully captures how reading shapes family life—nurturing curiosity, deepening connection, and weaving love into everyday moments. I was deeply moved by her reflections on sharing books, from timeless classics to the Torah, and how these stories illuminate both parenthood and faith. As a Christian and a lifelong book lover, I found her insights into Jewish traditions inspiring and eye-opening. This luminous, tender book is a celebration of family, learning, and the transformative power of stories.

Thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for an advance digital review copy. This is my honest review.

Ilana Kurshan reveals how literature weaves an invisible thread through the tapestry of family life. Kurshan, a mother of five living in Jerusalem, struggles to balance her passion for books with her responsibilities as a parent. Gradually she learns how to relate to reading not as a solitary pursuit and an escape from the messiness of life, but rather as a way of forging connection and teaching independence. Introducing her children to sacred and secular literature --- including the beloved classics of her childhood --- she becomes both a better mother and a more compassionate reader. Chief among the books Kurshan reads with her children is the Torah, whose ancient wisdom illuminates her family's path. Structured in five parts corresponding to the first five books of the Bible, this memoir traces the profound parallels between the biblical narrative and the daily rhythms of parenthood --- from the first picture books that create the world through language for little babies, to the bittersweet moment our children begin reading on their own, leaving us behind, atop the mountain, as they enter new lands without us. A luminous meditation on how shared stories become the foundation for family bonds,

Children of the Book by Ilana Kurshan was a beautifully written memoir.
An intriguing and fascinating read that was truly enjoyable.

A treasure for anyone interested in children's reading, this beautifully written memoir of a mother reading to her children captured my heart. It is a testament to the power of books to ground one's life and enhance understanding and awareness. The author, a mother of five living in Jerusalem, grounds her approach to reading in the Jewish tradition of reading and rereading the Torah. She arranges the book in sections under the headings "Genesis," "Exodus," "Leviticus," "Numbers," and "Deuteronomy," and roughly follows her children from their earliest to their later years. She shares my delight in many classic children's books, including The Very Hungry Caterpillar, James Marshall's George and Martha series, and the Viola Swamp books, as well as several by William Steig, and many other classic titles. She compares Wilbur in Charlotte's Web to Moses, both fated to die, but rescued to go on to greatness. She wrestles with the racism in Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House Books, and the way that both Wilder and Sydney Taylor crafted their stories to present happier family lives than, as their biographers have pointed out, they actually lived. She then questions the way she is shaping her own telling of her family life in the book she is writing at this moment.
I learned enough about Judaism and life in contemporary Israel to make me want to learn more. When the book ended, I shared the author's tears over letting go of her children as they became increasingly independent, and also the sadness of finishing a good book. I've always felt that a really good book is one that, upon completion, I want to turn back to the beginning and start reading over again. The Jews reread the Torah every year because every reading gives new insights. I wanted to go back to the beginning of this book. The title Children of the Book echoes the identification of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam as religions of the book. Although not primarily intended as a guide for parents, a lovely list of all the books mentioned is included, and many parents will find companionship, inspiration, and guidance in these pages. I wish I'd had this book when I was a young parent deeply involved in reading with my children.

This was a great memoir. In many ways it parallels my reading journey with my children. She's Jewish and tied about of things from their reading into things going on within the Torah and things like that which was encouraging to see as a Mom who also tried to draw parallels from our reading to how we should behave, respond, etc. I loved how it took me through the stages of mothering while sharing a love of reading with the children, beginning with just sitting on the floor reading picture books to them even if it's the same one over and over again to reading longer books aloud, to them asking for recommendations and realizing their own book likes and dislikes, to no longer needing recommendations but wanting to read to Mom and share what their excited about in their books. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ A great and encouraging read as a Mom who still loves hearing one more chapter from even the 12 yr old during our read aloud times.

I received an advance copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley for providing an ARC of this title in exchange of my review.

This is a very specific book, but what an amazing book! The Jewish people are the focus and star of this book, with the author providing a memoir of their family's reading life, but also Old Testament stories throughout the story.

This is an inspirational book of a family dedicated to reading. I do remember, many years ago, hearing that it is a good practice to read to the baby in utero, and did that with my children, including reading to them after birth as well, but I've never heard of anyone else doing so! Glad to know I'm not alone with that idea.

As someone who was raised Christian, I found this book enjoyable and informative on many different levels. It's a beautiful story of a family and really well crafted.

4 stars.

2.5/5 Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book. It was good. But it just wasn’t for me. I wasn’t the target reader audience but I still committed to finishing it. I love the love of reading in this memoir. Thank you again.

This was a wonderful tribute to reading as a family. I felt a lot of nostalgia as the author mentioned some of my favorite childhood books. I love how she relates them to life events, and also to events in the Torah. I also got a lot of insights into the Jewish religion and it was wonderful seeing how it was practiced and a part of this family's life in Jerusalem.

A mother’s celebration of the power and wonder of lifelong reading
Zibby Owens, My Most Anticipated Books 2025

In so many ways I feel like Ilana Kurshan and I are kindred book-loving souls. The way she describes her love of reading, how she relates and presents books to her children, and the way her faith inspires and informs her reading choices related to me on such a deep level.

Kurshan is Jewish, and as such has a deep love for the Torah–the first five books of the Bible. She relates the reading journey she and her children go on to the themes of each scriptural book (the start of the books you read, growing together, going out into the wilderness of selecting your own books, etc.). She references books she read growing up in the United States and the differences her children experience growing up in Israel, and how the books highlight the similarities of their feelings, but also how her children have no idea about some of the cultural significance of events in some beloved books.

Getting to learn more about the Jewish faith and culture was a beautiful experience for me. As a devout Christian I also find a lot of religious symbolism in the books I read–whether the author intended them or not–and Krushan helped me feel not quite so strange for doing that. Sometimes the language was a bit pedantic, particularly at the end, for my taste but it didn’t take away from how much I enjoyed getting to relive books from my past. I even ended up taking notes of which books I should put on the TBR list for my own kids.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

Read if you like books about books, non-fiction, reading with kids, religious books, Jewish culture, reading life.

Similar Reads: Texts from Jane Eyre by Daniel M. Lavery, I’d Rather be Reading by Anne Bogel, Walden by Henry David Thoreau, The Bible.

Children of the Book explores how literature deepens the bond of family life. A Jewish mother reads books to her five children as they grow up, both sacred and secular. A very observant Jewish household in Israel.
I wasn’t sure what to expect but found this book intriguing as Jewish scripture and stories become part of these children’s lives.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read this book.

A beautiful memoir that focuses on the importance of literature and sharing reading with your children and how that helps instill in them the joy and love of reading.

A memoir of Jewish family and the mother's experience reading the Torah and other literature to her children. As a mother of many who has spent endless hours reading different kinds of literature to her children, I really enjoyed this book. This journey also brought back memories of reading to my own children and I found myself deep in nostaliga and smiling when reading this book.
To me its always interesting to see how other families incorporate literature into their lives and this fit that bill. Great read and one I will come back to often.

I did receive an ARC copy of this book and am leaving a review voluntarily.

I am not the audience for this book. I would recommend to parents, and they need to be religious or spiritual in some sense. Know that there is not an exact, threaded plot, but more individual stories that link up with various parts of religious text.

I think that a book like this could be very rewarding for parents; I would not add this to a memoirs list for everyone, though.

I almost didn't pick this one up because while I love books, I didn't think reading someone else's experiences with reading would be interesting. That was until I saw that the author was Ilana Kurshan, author of If All The Seas Were Ink, a book I loved so much after reading my Netgalley copy, that I also purchased a softcover copy.

I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed this book! While I have always had a book nearby to read, Ilana truly takes this to the next level finding ways to read while doing everyday things that have to be done, and even though my kids are grown, I am sooooo tempted to get some of those children's' books she mentions.

Children of the Book by Ilana Kurshan is a luminous, heartfelt memoir that explores how literature shapes and deepens the bonds of family life. As a mother of five, Kurshan reflects on the tension between personal passion and parental duty, ultimately discovering that reading is not just a solitary escape but a bridge to connection, growth, and empathy. Drawing parallels between parenting and the five books of the Torah, she beautifully intertwines sacred and secular stories, showing how books can guide, comfort, and unite across generations. A tender celebration of motherhood, faith, and the transformative power of lifelong reading.

This is a story about family, as well as an ode to reading books that explores how the mother's children, and the mother's love of reading, to grow to instill a love of reading in her children.

At times, it explores different ideas, but mostly this is a story of a mother's love for her children, as well as wanting her children to enjoy reading, and her children truly enjoying reading.

Pub Date: Sep 09 2025

Many thanks for the opportunity to read 'Children of the Book'!

I'm not sure what to say about this book without giving it away. I loved the writing. It kept me engaged and wanting to read more. I felt like I was in the story, if that makes sense?

I loved this! Between being a mother and being a book lover, this was so relatable. As a Christian, it was fascinating to get the life of a Jew threaded throughout. And knowing the Bible, I could totally see the parallels she made. Beautiful writing and thoroughly enjoyable to read about daily life in different stages along with stages of a reading life. Would totally recommend this to any book lover, especially mothers!

This book surprised me. At glance of the cover, I expected a memoir about reading aloud to children. I expected anecdotes on the benefits, experiences, and emotions wrapped up in the bonding of time spent with our children wrapped up in stories.

What I received was that AND biblical tie ins. The author is Jewish and uses the Torah to draw parallels of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy to her own life experiences with children, with books, and through the Covid pandemic.

I highlighted so so many nuggets of wisdom. A thoroughly enjoyable read.