What’s Arriving in Mailboxes in 2025?

More than 650,000 children around the world receive PJ Library books. It takes a lot of great titles to fill families’ bookshelves with stories they reach for again and again. That’s why PJ Library not only sources and acquires the best Jewish children’s books on the market — we also develop them. With donor support, PJ Library’s books team and in-house press, PJ Publishing, help cultivate the high-quality Jewish children’s literature lineup that PJ Library is known for. Here’s a look at a few of the new books launching this year.

By Naomi Shulman, Managing Editor of PJ Publishing

This story appeared in the summer 2025 issue of PROOF, a PJ Library magazine.

Created in 2014, PJ Publishing has been steadily expanding its catalog. Four PJ Publishing titles will be published this October alone! If you have a PJ Library subscriber in your household, keep an eye on your mailbox for one of these titles.

Say Shalom All Day Long

Age 1

Written by Elizabeth Suneby
Illustrated by Elke Boschinger

For such a small word, shalom makes a big impact. In this simple board book, a young child learns the different aspects of the word shalom by saying hello, goodbye, and peace to the world through the transitions of the day.

Bavajadas! Thatʼs Just Silly!

Age 2

Written by Sarah Aroeste
Illustrated by Annabel Tempest

“Do you use cookies to scrub, and eat halá in the tub?” This laugh-out-loud rhyming board book by singer-songwriter-author Sarah Aroeste embraces silliness with the fun of the Ladino word bavajadas — nonsense!

Chesed

Age 3

Written by Karyn Friedman-Everham
Illustrated by Gabby Grant

Feeding hungry birds, helping a child with a dropped ice-cream cone, bringing a fruit basket to a housebound neighbor … small things can make a big difference. How many ways can kindness make an impact in your world? In this story, a child’s family and neighbors join her in bringing chesed (loving-kindness) to every part of a day.

Challah from Heaven

Age 7

Written and illustrated by Richard Ungar

The wise Gaon of Minsk is in town for Shabbat, but Mama’s lighter-than-air challah has flown away! Can Hanni get it back in time for Shabbat dinner? With his signature vibrant illustrations, National Jewish Book Award winner Richard Ungar elevates this whimsical story into an instant classic.

If you don’t get one of these titles in the mail, don’t worry! You’ll be able to find them at amazon.com/pjlibrary. Happy reading!