Hanukkah books for children and teens

Hanukkah books for children and teens

These Hanukkah books for children bring the Festival of Lights to life through family stories, Jewish folklore, history, humour, crafts and contemporary teen fiction. The selection ranges from bright picture books about candles, latkes and community to chapter books, graphic novels and YA romances in which Jewish identity and seasonal traditions matter. It offers useful reading for homes, libraries and classrooms, with fiction and non-fiction for different ages. This list features books by Marissa Meyer, Eric A. Kimmel, Emily Jenkins, Lily Murray, Hannah Reynolds, Laura Silverman, Jake Maia Arlow, Stephanie Perkins, Marisa Kanter, and Malachy Doyle.

Hanukkah books for children and teens – our recommendations

Hanukkah picture books for 3-7 year olds

The Miracle of Hanukkah by Malachy Doyle, illustrated by Christopher Corr

King Antiochus has destroyed the Temple and the city after the Jewish people refuse to worship him instead of God. Judah Maccabee and his community then face another problem: there is almost no oil left to keep the Temple flame alight. Malachy Doyle tells the Hanukkah story in an approachable picture-book format.

The Happiest Hanukkah by Ivor Baddiel, illustrated by Kathryn Selbert

Leora loves helping her family prepare for Hanukkah, from food and decorations to bringing out the hanukkiah. This year she has one particular hope: she wants to show that she is ready for the responsibility of lighting the candles. The story gives 3-4 year olds a warm, family-centred view of anticipation, participation and growing independence during the festival.

Eight Nights, Eight Lights by Natalie Barnes, illustrated by Andrea Stegmaier

Across eight nights, eight different Jewish families light candles and celebrate Hanukkah in their own homes and community. Songs, prayer, food, friendship and family appear alongside the repeated ritual of adding light night by night. Natalie Barnes uses a lyrical, rhythmic text, while Andrea Stegmaier’s illustrations show a range of households sharing familiar traditions. Ideal for 3-6 year olds, the book is particularly useful for showing that one festival can be celebrated through shared customs in many different family settings.

A Dragon Called Spark by Lily Murray, illustrated by Kirsti Beautyman

Eva has moved to a new town and relies on her imaginary dragon, Spark, while everything around her still feels unfamiliar. During Hanukkah she makes a wish for a miracle and meets Charlie, the boy next door, after he notices the hanukkiah in her window. As their friendship grows, Eva shares her family’s traditions and gradually tells him about Spark. This picture book for 4-7 year olds brings together Hanukkah, friendship, moving home and imaginative play.

Meet the Latkes by Alan Silberberg

Lucy Latke and her family are potato pancakes, and Grandpa Latke’s version of the Hanukkah story is gloriously muddled. His telling features Mega Bees, an enormous dreidel and evil alien potatoes, while the family dog, Applesauce, repeatedly tries to put the details right.

All-of-a-Kind Family Hanukkah by Emily Jenkins, illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky

Set on New York’s Lower East Side in 1912, this picture book returns to the five sisters from Sydney Taylor’s All-of-a-Kind Family. Youngest sister Gertie wants to help with the latkes, but frustration gets the better of her when she is left out of the preparations. Papa’s arrival gives her an especially important part in the celebration: lighting the first candle. This Hanukkah story for 3-7 year olds combines family bustle, food and tradition.

Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins by Eric A. Kimmel, illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman

Hershel of Ostropol reaches a village on the first night of Hanukkah expecting warmth, food and celebration, only to find darkness. Goblins have taken over the synagogue and frightened everyone into abandoning the festival. Hershel volunteers to spend the nights there and uses wit rather than strength to face the creatures one by one. Eric A. Kimmel’s folktale for 4-8 year olds, paired with Trina Schart Hyman’s distinctive goblins, blends suspense, comedy and trickster storytelling with candle-lighting and Hanukkah tradition.

Hanukkah books for children aged 7-12

Let It Glow by Marissa Meyer and Joanne Levy

Aviva Davis and Holly Martin meet at holiday pageant tryouts and discover an extraordinary coincidence: the two adopted 12-year-olds are identical twins who never knew the other existed. Curious about each other’s families and celebrations, they secretly swap homes for the holidays. Told through their contrasting personalities and alternating experiences, this story for 8-12 year olds uses a lively separated-at-birth premise Hanukkah traditions, sisterhood, and adoption.

The Golden Dreidel by Ellen Kushner, illustrated by Kevin Keele

At her family’s Hanukkah party, Sara receives an enormous golden dreidel from the mysterious Tante Miriam, together with a warning about spinning miracles. The gift becomes a doorway into a fantasy world of magical princesses, riddles, demons and figures drawn from Jewish folklore. Sara must depend on courage and quick thinking to help a new friend and find her way home. Ellen Kushner’s fantasy for 7-10 year olds gives confident younger readers a chapter-book adventure in which the familiar dreidel becomes the starting point for an imaginative quest.

Shield of the Maccabees: A Hanukkah Graphic Novel by Eric A. Kimmel and Dov Smiley

Set during the period behind the Hanukkah story, this graphic novel centres on Jonathan, a Jewish boy, and Jason, his Greek neighbour. Their friendship develops as the world around them is divided by political, religious and cultural conflict, placing a personal relationship inside the upheaval of the Maccabean era. Eric A. Kimmel and Dov Smiley use the graphic-novel form to give children an accessible route into the historical setting associated with Hanukkah.

Rachel Friedman and Eight Not-Perfect Nights of Hanukkah by Sarah Kapit, illustrated by Genevieve Kote

Rachel Friedman is determined to organise eight wonderful activities for eight perfect nights of Hanukkah. Her plans include family fun and favourite traditions, but her older brother Aaron is distinctly less enthusiastic, and a big mishap threatens the celebration she has imagined. Rachel responds with the determination and creativity that drive this early chapter-book series.

The Day I Became a Potato Pancake by Arie Kaplan, illustrated by Beilin Xu

Young inventor Naomi Hirsch and her best friend Ben cannot resist experimenting with the inventions in Naomi’s scientist mother’s lab. When the Transfogram accidentally turns Ben into a human-sized latke, they need a solution before sundown on the first night of Hanukkah. The complication is that Ben starts enjoying the attention his new form attracts. Arie Kaplan and Beilin Xu turn this comic premise into a graphic novel for 7-9 year olds about friendship, choices, science-fiction invention and Jewish identity.

All About Hanukkah: Things to Make and Do by Shoshana Boyd Gelfand, illustrated by Kathryn Selbert

This illustrated activity book combines Hanukkah facts with hands-on projects and recipes for 8-12 year olds. Children can learn why the festival is associated with light, then make decorations, create a menorah, make a dreidel, design greetings cards and prepare wrapping paper. Food activities extend across different Jewish and international traditions, with recipes including kugel, chicken schnitzel, gulab jamun and Hanukkah challah.

Would You Rather? Hanukkah Edition by Lindsey Daly

Lindsey Daly turns Hanukkah into a conversational game with more than 160 questions covering the festival’s story, foods, rituals, gifts and family celebrations. The familiar “would you rather?” format asks children to make choices, explain their reasoning and compare imaginative scenarios, so it works as both entertainment and a prompt for discussion. Ideal for 8-12 year olds.

Hanukkah books for teens

Eight Dates and Nights: A Hanukkah Romance by Betsy Aldredge

New Yorker Hannah Levin is stranded by snow at her grandmother’s home in a small Texas town during Hanukkah. Missing home and feeling disconnected from the festival, she wanders into an old deli and meets Noah, the only other Jewish teenager nearby. His enthusiasm for Hanukkah is impossible to ignore, and the pair end up working together to help his family’s struggling deli. This YA romance uses eight nights of seasonal activities to connect first love with family history, community and Hannah’s changing relationship with Hanukkah.

Eight Nights of Flirting by Hannah Reynolds

Sixteen-year-old Shira Barbanel has a plan for Hanukkah: finally get together with the boy she has chosen as ideal boyfriend material. The problem is that flirting leaves her completely out of her depth, so she strikes a bargain with Tyler Nelson, her charming nemesis and former crush. When snow leaves them together at Golden Doors, their practical arrangement becomes more complicated. Hannah Reynolds builds this YA romance around family celebrations, winter atmosphere and candlelight, with Shira learning that feelings do not always follow the plan she has written for them.

Recommended for You by Laura Silverman

Shoshanna Greenberg finds comfort in her job at the Once Upon bookshop when life at home feels unsettled. A holiday sales competition offers a chance to earn a bonus, but new colleague Jake Kaplan quickly becomes her main rival. Their contest mixes workplace comedy, bookish enthusiasm and romance as the two Jewish teenagers discover they have more in common than expected. Laura Silverman’s YA novel places Hanukkah within a busy December retail season and gives teen readers a contemporary Jewish heroine whose love of books shapes both the rivalry and the romance.

How to Excavate a Heart by Jake Maia Arlow

Shani arrives for a month-long palaeoichthyology internship wanting to concentrate on fossils after a painful breakup. Instead, an awkward first encounter with May begins when Shani’s mum accidentally bumps into her with the family Subaru. A dog-walking job brings the two girls together again, and winter weather changes the shape of Shani’s carefully planned break. Jake Maia Arlow’s sapphic Jewish YA romance mixes science, family, humour and seasonal traditions, giving older teens a contemporary holiday story in which Jewish identity sits naturally alongside first love and questions about trust.

It’s a Whole Spiel: Love, Latkes, and Other Jewish Stories, edited by Katherine Locke and Laura Silverman

Fourteen stories present contemporary Jewish teenagers dealing with friendship, family, romance, belief, identity and the many different ways Jewish life can look. The collection moves between settings including camp, Shabbat dinner, travel and school, with one story sending pranks and romantic disaster through a crush’s Hanukkah party. For 14+ year olds, this lively anthology brings together writers including David Levithan, Rachel Lynn Solomon, Dahlia Adler and Nova Ren Suma.

My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories, edited by Stephanie Perkins

Twelve YA writers contribute romantic stories set across the winter holiday season, with celebrations including Christmas, Hanukkah, the Winter Solstice and New Year. The anthology is edited by Stephanie Perkins and includes work by Rainbow Rowell, Jenny Han, David Levithan, Holly Black, Gayle Forman and other established YA authors. Ideal for 13+ year olds, the collection lets readers move between different voices and seasonal settings while keeping romance at the centre.

As If on Cue by Marisa Kanter

Lifelong rivals Natalie and Reid are used to competing, especially when their school’s arts budget forces Natalie’s theatre ambitions against Reid’s award-winning band. A prank war pushes things too far, and their punishment requires them to work together on a student-written musical. As the project develops, rivalry starts turning into something else. Marisa Kanter’s 12+ YA romance features Jewish teen life alongside the school drama, including a Hanukkah party.

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Hanukkah resources for teachers

• The Jewish Museum London has an excellent collection of resources exploring Hanukkah through historical objects and contemporary Jewish family life. Teachers can access videos showing a family celebrating Hanukkah, photographs of traditional lamps and dreidels, a latke recipe, a glossary and a Jewish festivals calendar.
• The National Association of Teachers of Religious Education (NATRE) provides a downloadable teaching unit for children aged 5-7 exploring how Jewish festivals preserve important stories and traditions. Activities include making a dreidel, investigating the significance of latkes and doughnuts, creating a Hanukkah lamp and discussing the miracle of the oil.
• BBC Teach’s KS1 Hanukkah assembly uses an animated retelling of the festival’s origins, accompanied by a downloadable assembly framework, questions, music suggestions and opportunities for reflection. Its KS2 assembly features a Jewish family preparing for Hanukkah and explores why the festival is celebrated. Both resources are available free through TES.
• Twinkl’s Hanukkah teaching collection includes illustrated PowerPoints, story sequencing cards, dreidel templates, vocabulary mats, reading comprehension activities, quizzes and craft projects for primary schools. There are also resources for teaching about the eight nights of Hanukkah and the significance of traditional Jewish symbols. Some downloads require membership.
• Widgit offers a particularly useful free collection of symbol-supported Hanukkah resources for inclusive classrooms and pupils with additional communication needs. The downloadable PDF includes differentiated story books, vocabulary symbols, quizzes, crosswords, recipes and instructions for making and playing with dreidels.
• The Hamilton Trust’s Festivals of Light teaching unit provides Reception planning that introduces Hanukkah alongside other religious celebrations. Activities include investigating Jewish artefacts, listening to the Hanukkah story, making potato latkes and creating a model menorah using playdough. Downloadable planning and teaching files require an account or subscription.
• TrueTube offers a free five-minute film for KS3 and KS4 RE students showing how a Jewish family celebrates Hanukkah. It explains the historical background, lighting the hanukkiah, traditional prayers, dreidel games and the importance of foods cooked in oil. A transcript and GCSE curriculum links are also provided.
• The National Library of Israel has a substantial collection of Hanukkah learning resources based on historical photographs, documents and artefacts. Teachers can explore different designs of Hanukkah lamps, investigate the Maccabees, examine historical celebrations and use printable dreidel activities. The collection is particularly useful for KS2 and secondary history and RE lessons.
• My Jewish Learning provides a detailed account of Hanukkah’s origins, explaining the Maccabean revolt, the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem and the development of the miracle-of-the-oil tradition. This is a useful source for secondary teachers exploring the difference between historical evidence, religious texts and later traditions.
• The Jewish Education Project has curated a wide-ranging collection of Hanukkah teaching activities for early years, primary and teenage learners. Resources include primary-source investigations, discussion questions, Jewish music, traditional celebrations, candle-lighting activities and lessons examining how Hanukkah is observed in different communities. Some materials are designed for Jewish educational settings and may need adapting for UK RE classrooms.
• Early Learning Furniture offers a free printable Hanukkah activity pack containing nine games, colouring activities and decorations. These resources are suitable for EYFS settings, classroom displays and independent learning activities. Donations to Great Ormond Street Hospital are optional.
• The Educational Recording Agency provides access to the CBeebies programme My First Festivals: Hanukkah, following a young girl named Sophia as she celebrates with her family. This is a useful introduction to contemporary Jewish family life for EYFS and KS1. UK schools with an ERA Licence can access the recording through the service.
• RE:ONLINE introduces the Jewish Museum London’s Inclusive Judaism project, which helps teachers represent the diversity of Jewish life in Britain. Its image library and professional development resources offer valuable guidance for teaching Hanukkah through authentic Jewish perspectives rather than relying exclusively on festival symbols and worksheets.
• The Jewish Museum London’s virtual classrooms include a bookable Miracles of Chanukah workshop for KS1 and KS2. Pupils explore the story of Judah and the Maccabees through an authentic Hanukkah lamp, discovering the significance of light, religious freedom and the festival’s traditions. The museum also offers outreach workshops for schools in the London area.
• The Board of Deputies of British Jews provides Jewish Living Online, a free digital educational resource designed for KS3 and older students. Using British Jewish voices, multimedia material, discussion questions and assessments, it supports teachers exploring Jewish religious identity, traditions and contemporary Jewish life, providing useful wider context for lessons about Hanukkah.

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