The Story of Esther: A Purim Tale Hardcover – January 1, 2011

I bought this to introduce our son to the story of Purim. Some parts i thought were a little too graphic for him (even if they are authentic) such as Hamen being hung on the gallows made for Mordechai; however, they were easy enough to simply skip. The story itself is long. It kept our son's attention, but it did take awhile to read it. The pictures are nice and, like i said, the story is authentic.

Master story teller Eric A Kimmel puts his magic touch on the biblical Story of Esther. His lengthy text is more suited for upper elementary students than younger children. Eric skillfully highlights important facts and details from the original version into a child friendly adaptation. Jill’s creative artwork includes a mixture of acrylic, gouache, tempera, watercolor inks and pencil. The detailed drawings adds to the overall appeal and provides a better understanding of life in ancient Persia.

I am not an educator or artist, merely a grandparent who was looking for a Purim book to read to my grandchildren. The book ends with Haman begging Queen Esther for mercy, and the King, implicitly with her support, ordering "Hang him from the gallows out there! Hang his whole family with him!" This is the first mention of Haman's "whole family", When the young listener or reader hears "whole family" they will think of and identify with families like their own, with very young children. They will wonder any children deserve to be hung (what did they do?) and may wonder just what kind of religion Judaism is. Technically, the rendition of events in this children's book version follows the original (his children were adults and in on the conspiracy) but in my opinion, this is a gratuitous insertion into the narrative.

Fast delivery, inexpensive and good quality for a used book.I read it to my religious school students (Jewish) and itspurred some good discussion, although it is missing somemajor points from the original Megillah.

My granddaughter likes Ester from the Bibl. Some of this story is not the same as the Bible. I was hoping for better, but it is good that Ester is respected in this story.

Great telling of the story of Esther with all the details in a way that keeps the attention of a child. Colorful pictures add interest and complement the written story.

The author did NOT stick to the story as laid out by the scriptures. In fact, Esther is even compared to 'The Queen of Heaven'. I do not want my three year old learning about Ishtar; we bought the book for Purim. This book is going the trash- it isn't worth teaching my child inaccurately. Very disappointed.

Lovely, beautiful illustrations with language that is well-written and enjoyable to read.

Detailed story quite close to the actual Megillah. My 6 year old loved it