Drop by Drop

June 19, 2017
The man who became Rabbi Akiva, a famous Jewish sage who lived during the first and second centuries C.E., started life as an illiterate shepherd. But his wife, Rachel, who married him despite her rich father’s objections, “knew that a man with such goodness in his heart, who understood so much about life, must be smart even if he did not know how to read or write.” Her unstinting love and encouragement leads to an epiphany: “My mind is not harder than a rock,” says the 40-year-old Akiva while resting by a brook. “I can learn—just like water cuts through stone—a little bit each day.” Nayberg (The Wren and the Sparrow) makes this old story feel fresh and immediate through her angular drawings, which are inventively composed and rendered in radiant, translucent colors reminiscent of stained glass. Jules (Feathers for Peacock) strives to make Rachel and Akiva co-heroes, though readers may find it hard to get excited about a character defined by support, sacrifice, and patience. But it’s easy to ally with Akiva’s struggles to master literacy, which includes a stint as the oldest pupil in an unruly local Hebrew School. Ages 4–9.

June 15, 2017
A devoted wife is the inspiration behind a noted scholar of Judaism.Rachel, a rich man's daughter, falls in love with a poor, illiterate shepherd named Akiva who works for her father. She recognizes that a man "with such goodness in his heart, who understood so much about life, must be smart." Her father disowns her, but they marry and she encourages him to study even though he is 40. Akiva is reluctant, but one day he observes the power of water to slowly erode stone and realizes that "I can learn--just like water cuts through stone--a little bit each day." He begins attending school with children, masters Hebrew, and then leaves home for many years to study Torah. Akiva becomes the revered sage of Judaism, "a wise rabbi followed by thousands of students." His wife is never forgotten. The historical Akiva lived and studied in the first century CE, after the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, and worked to codify Judaism's oral laws into the Mishnah portion of the Talmud. Jules has based her warmly told narrative on legends of the sage and his wife. Nayberg's richly textured illustrations are stately and sculptural, depicting Rachel and Akiva with pale skin and red hair. Even those not familiar with Rabbi Akiva's monumental achievements will be moved by his devotion to learning and his wife's loving encouragement. (author's note) (Picture book/religion. 5-8)

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