I was excited to receive Passover Next Door by David and Betty Weinberger and share it with my family. As a Messianic Believer who observes Passover and other Biblical holidays, I am always thrilled to find books that share the love of the Biblical feast. Readers will see Jesus woven into the Exodus story and the Passover Seder within the pages of this book. The story is for all ages to enjoy from child to adult.

Passover Next Door is a beautifully illustrated hardback book with thirty-eight pages. The book is written by authors David and Betty Weinberger. The illustrator, Melody Hemmer, has captured the story on every page. The illustrations look realistic down to the smallest detail. The illustrations are like looking back through a photo album at the events.

The story does a wonderful job showing the events leading up to the Israelites leaving Egypt and the preparation of the Seder. You then get a glimpse in the Passover Seder itself. I love seeing the Passover table illustrations with the Haggadah, matzo, and so much more. Seeing the illustrations is a delightful visual for someone who is not familiar with Passover to paint a picture of the events. With the words and illustrations, the story captures the attention and imagination.

The Passover is shared from the traditions of a Jewish Messianic family. The story is told from a child’s perspective through the eyes of a family who are invited to share their first Passover Seder with their neighbor.

I love how the story shares details that are overlooked in many stories about Passover and the Seder. It shares the traditions that are done in the Seder from washing your hands, the kittle, opening the door for Elijah, and eating the items on the Seder plate. The illustrations are perfect for the words on each page. It uses Jesus Hebrew name Yeshua. The story is rich in details but not overwhelming. It will keep your attention throughout the story. Kids can even search for something that happened on Davy’s shirt throughout the illustrations.

I love how the book shows Yeshua throughout the pages of the story. One example is the matzo representing Yeshua. The matzo has many stripes and is pierced and then hidden to be found later in the Seder. For those that do not know what matzo is, the book explains that and many other things through the conversations in the story.

In the back of the book are lyrics of a Messianic adaptation of the traditional "Dayenu" song. There are also recipes for Charoset and a family recipe of Passover Chicken.

Originally, I planned on just reading this with my sixteen-year-old with special needs. My son also ended up listening in while I read the story aloud. We read the story the week leading up to Passover. My daughter went to the pantry and started cleaning out the leaven in our house after we read the first few pages. She wanted to make sure that we were ready for our Passover Seder.

Passover Next Door is a beautiful and interesting story for someone who wants to learn more about Passover. It is wonderful even for a family who celebrates this feast day. The words and illustrations show an authentic Passover celebrated by millions of Jews and Gentiles across the world. The beauty is that the Passover Seder is a tradition celebrated for centuries for both Jews and Gentiles alike. Come and partake of the beauty of the Passover Seder within the pages of this story. See Yeshua in the Passover Seder.

This is a delightful book that will be read and enjoyed each year as my family approaches the season of Passover.

Product review by Renee Knoblauch, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, May 2019