2026 Jewish American Heritage Month YA Picks
An experience I enjoy as Teen Services Librarian is hearing patrons discuss attending bar mitzvahs, bat mitzvahs, and bet mitzvahs (one of several options for young nonbinary Jewish people) for themselves or their loved ones. It is wonderful to work in a place where it is so commonplace to discuss these celebrations for young Jewish peoples’ coming of age. In this post, I’m giving you 12 recommendations in this post—6 fiction, and 6 nonfiction—since 12 is a common age for these ceremonies. Since 13 is another common age, I will also throw in one more title: Kosher Pokemon: A Short Guide to Applying the Laws of Kashrut to Generation I Pokemon by MK Zvokel, which is a zine.
If you want to use your library to request any of these, simply click the cover. On the linked catalog page, click “Request Any Edition,” and follow the steps provided from there.
Sincerely,
Your Teen Librarian
P.S.: Did you know there’s a new Instagram for Teen Services at Maplewood Library?: @sincerelymmlteenservices
Fiction Recommendations
Nonfiction Recommendations
