~ What’s New ~
My upcoming book, I Will NOT Eat Latkes! was featured at the Apples & Honey Press display during the American Library Association conference in June. Here is the description in their Fall 2026 catalog:
A funny, foodie friendship tale for Hanukkah about patience, courage, and trying new things, made for early readers.
Potchky will not eat smelly onions or brown potatoes, especially when his friend Nosh mixes them with matzah meal, eggs and salt, thank you very much. But Nosh doesn’t let Potchky’s complaints get in the way of cooking for Hanukkah. Rather, Nosh gently guides Potchky to give new foods a try. This sweet, simple tale celebrates Hanukkah with age-appropriate messages of trying new foods and having patience with our friends.
Written with an early reader in mind, the story is told with easy-to-read words and without contractions. The book’s backmatter includes the story of Hanukkah, a science experiment to do at home, and, of course, a latke recipe. Perfect for fans of Elephant and Piggie, Green Eggs and Ham, and other simple books of humor, friendship, and growing.
The book received its first review in Publisher’s Weekly! You can preorder it now from Bookshop.org at the special sale price of $18.59.
The Jewish Book Garden Substack has summaries of the Association of Jewish Libraries conference and other articles of interest, including a Fall 2026 Preview of Jewish Kidlit (which includes my new book). Also look for Heidi Rabinowitz’s Book of Life podcast interviews with new people at two Jewish kidlit publishers: Leila Sales at Kar-Ben and Derek Stordahl at Behrman House/Apples & Honey Press with retiring owners David Behrman and Vicki Weber.
~ Interview ~
This month, I am pleased to welcome Melissa Stoller, another member of the Jewish Joytellers, whose new book about a girl who adds her own flair to the family’s stuffed cabbage rolls recipe comes out just in time for the High Holidays.
Welcome, Melissa!
Melissa: Martha, thank you so much for featuring Stella’s Special Recipe on your Substack.
Please give a short summary of your book.
Melissa: I’m so excited for the release on August 4th of this picture book (illustrated by Valerya Milovanova, Kar-Ben Publishing), which is geared toward children ages 2-8. The story is about Stella, who is finally old enough to cook her family’s favorite Rosh Hashanah holiday recipe. The recipe has been handed down through the generations, with each of her relatives adding an ingredient and a little bit of love to the recipe. Stella wants to add her own special touch – she tries pumpkins, peas, potatoes, and more, until she finds just the right thing. Throughout the book, Stella uses ingredients from her home garden, and she also enjoys mementos from her relatives, like her Nana’s necklace that she wears close to her heart. I hope readers of all ages will enjoy seeing Stella cooking with her family, and sharing love and connection through family heritage, rituals, and recipes.
About how long did it take from when you started writing the book until it was published?
Melissa: It was definitely a long process from writing to publication! I write in many drafts and iterations. And then I submit to my wonderful critique groups for their review, often multiple drafts as I revise. At the same time, I am always working on multiple manuscripts including a chapter book and board books. Switching around to different stories is helpful for me as I work out story lines and any challenges in the writing process. Also, I love researching and it’s helpful for me to maintain multiple research projects about the stories I’m writing, whether fiction or non-fiction. I would say it was about two years of writing and submitting this story, and then about two years from acquisition to publication.
As part of the writing process, I also spent a day with my mother and youngest daughter testing the stuffed cabbage roll recipe that we included as back matter. I have many wonderful photos and memories of that day. My mother passed away in September 2024, and I am so grateful that she knew this story was being published. I dedicated the book to my nana and my mother, for all the special recipes and love they shared with me.
I submitted this story myself (my previous agent left the agenting business, so I’m back in the querying trenches!) I am truly thankful to Kar-Ben Publishing for believing in this story and bringing the characters to life in this book!
Tell us about the writing & editing process for this book.
Melissa: I truly enjoyed the writing and editing process. Working with everyone at Kar-Ben has been an incredible experience! And the artwork by Valerya Milovanova is so beautiful and brilliant! Valerya included so many wonderful details. I especially love the scenes in the garden and in the kitchen cooking. We didn’t collaborate at all during the editing process, but now I follow Valerya on Instagram and she posts the most amazing videos of her artistic process for this book as well as others. I love her color palette, all the designs throughout the pages, and the expressions on Stella’s face. I hope readers will enjoy lingering on the pages to look for Stella’s heart necklace, for the butterflies flit-flittering, and for the stuffed cabbage rolls being assembled ingredient by ingredient.
What did you learn while writing this book?
Melissa: I always learn something new when writing! I researched stuffed cabbage rolls, and learned that many cultures across the globe include the same or similar types of rolls in their cuisines.
And I am always studying the craft of writing for children. I am involved with many writing groups and challenges, including the 12x12 Picture Book Challenge, The Writing Barn, Inked Voices, Rate Your Story, the Children’s Book Academy, SCBWI, and more. Participating in the writing community with these groups and with my amazing writing friends helps me to always learn more as I try to infuse heart and humor into my stories. I also try to read as many picture books as I can with the intention to enjoy them and to learn from them about what makes a compelling story. I hope that by continuing to study craft, I will always move forward with my goal of writing to bring joy and connection to young readers and their adults. And – I’m so glad that we are working together in our Jewish Joytellers book marketing group! It’s wonderful to share this writing life with friends!
How can we find out more about you and your books?
Melissa: Thank you again for highlighting Stella’s Special Recipe. Here is my bio and how to connect. I hope everyone enjoys this story!
Melissa Stoller writes to bring heartfelt connection and joy to her readers. Her other picture books include Hazel and Mabel: Two Hearts Apart, illustrated by Anita Bagdi (Gnome Road Publishing, 2025) and Mojo’s Return: A Story of Resilience and Hope, illustrated by Uzi Binyamin (co-authored with Lishay Miran Lavi and Mary Millman) (Niv Publishing, 2025). Melissa is also the author of the chapter book The Enchanted Snow Globe Collection - Return to Coney Island, and the picture books Scarlet’s Magic Paintbrush; Ready, Set, GOrilla!; Sadie’s Shabbat Stories; Planting Friendship: Peace, Salaam, Shalom; and Building Bridges: Peace, Salaam, Shalom (co-written). Melissa is a Rate Your Story Judge, a Blogger for the Children’s Book Academy, a member of SCBWI, a Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center Trustee, and a former school and synagogue trustee. In other chapters of her life, Melissa has worked as a lawyer, legal writing instructor, freelance writer/editor, and early childhood educator. She lives in New York City with her family, and enjoys theater, museums, and working with young readers at school and library visits.
You can find Melissa on her website, Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
Wonderful! And I will see you again in a couple of months when you interview me about I Will NOT Eat Latkes on your blog!
~ Preview ~
This month’s photo quiz features two famous European statues of fictional females by the sea. Can you guess who and where they are?
~ Review ~
Instead of recommending another Substack this month, I encourage you to check out Melissa Stoller’s wonderful blog, called This Writing Life. Her 3 Question Interviews of children’s book authors focus on Stories, Creativity, and Connection. If you enjoy reading my interviews, you will certainly want to read hers, as well.
If you subscribe, please let Melissa know you found out about her blog from me!
Thanks for reading The Simpsonian Muse. If you haven’t already subscribed, please do so and recommend this Substack to a friend.
~ Answer to Preview ~
The first photo may be easier to identify. It’s the Little Mermaid, and the photo was taken last month when the cruise my husband and I were on spent a day in Copenhagen, Denmark. Apparently, every tour bus stops for a photo op with her, as the street was quite crowded. Later, during a walking tour of the city, I snapped a photo of her creator, Hans Christian Andersen, from across a busy street.
For more information (and a photo of the Little Mermaid without a crowd), see Hans Christian Andersen: Legendary Danish Fairy Tales Author by Steven Højlund.
The second photo may be more difficult to identify. I shot it during a leisurely cruise down the Rhine River when we took a bus tour through parts of Germany in 2018. The statue depicts the Loreley (also spelled Lorelei), a woman of folkloric fame. There was even a famous song written about her (which I had to learn when I took German in high school!)
But our tour guide explained that the Lorely is actually the name of the mountain that stands at a treacherous bend of the Rhine river, as shown on the sign below.
German Girl in America has a detailed account of the Loreley – The Legend, the Song, and How to See It, including more photos, stories, and the song (scroll past all the ads to read the lyrics in German and English). If you look at the video, the statue appears at about 2 minutes 48 seconds.
So long for now, and don’t forget to amuse your Muse!
~ Martha
