Books in a suitcase/ Being a pirate in a bathtub

Sami is a young pirate. He crosses the oceans in his bathtub. To accompany him, his three trusted and loved ducks. Until one morning he receives the unexpected call from the International Pirate Association’s representative. “Dear Sami, to be a pirate an official certificate is needed”. However, to get it one must behave like
an authentic pirate and follow some rules.Anarchic buccaneers have their behavior code too. “The pirate does not destroy his enemies. The pirate gets rid of all timetables. The pirate does not brush his teeth, change his underwear, and above all: never bathe! No pirate enjoys taking a bath”. But Sami likes it, and so do his three duck friends. Sami tries anyway to follow the
rules, but finds out that it is more difficult than he thought: he tries to chase a monster, to be kind, and mainly never to bathe. It is of course a children’s story, envisaged by Tzipor Fromkin and Miriam Salzberg. The two authors brought it to life as a play, while illustrator Shimrit Elkanati adapted it to a book. Her illustrations full of character and life, along with the entertaining story of our pirate, are a pleasant pastime to share with little ones. It is a good exercise for Hebrew beginners, and a way to add color to this dark time. And Elkanati’s illustrations are little masterpieces, which not even the New York Times can do without.

Daniel Reichel