Review: Nechama Tamler, Jewish Bulletin of Northern California


Haggadah: A Different Night Short Reviews Long Reviews 4 Children Art of 4 Children Leader's Guide Plagues Bags
	LONG REVIEWS: The Jewish world — from Reform and Reconstructionist to Orthodox — is raving about A DIFFERENT NIGHT *reviews by* Jewish Journal South Moment Magazine Jewish Bulletin of Northern CA Cleveland Jewish News Jerusalem Post
	CREATIVE HAGGADAH offers lively ideas for family seder
	NECHAMA TAMLER BulletIn Correspondent If your Passover seder is getting stale, here's something fresh sure to perk up the flavor of this rich family celebration. With *A Different Night, authors Noam Zion and David Dishon offer a "family participation Haggadah" that enables everyone — from the most learned to the least — to bring energy, enthusiasm and questions to the seder table. Zion and Dishon provide dozens of ideas to make even the most plodding of seder leaders into wonderfully exciting storytellers.* This new, family-centered Haggadah is ripe with novel suggestions. It encourages readers to explore the story of Passover through inquiry and discussion. Too often, this seems an impossible task. After all, how does one make sure to get in all the important parts of the seder, but not tarry too long before the meal, while at the same time making the discussion lively and engaging for the entire range of guests? *A Different Night, however, makes it easy. For example, it lists these three questions as ways to open up the discussion: What was it like to be a slave? What do you know about Moses as a baby and as a young man? How did the Jews finally become free? If you want to go a step further, the accompanying Leader's Guide* has two chapters on role-playing. One, by Aliza Arzt, comes complete with descriptions of characters and situations that you can mail to seder guests ahead of time. The other, by Peter Pitzele, tells how to bring "bibliodrama" to the seder table.
		Illustrating the pluralistic breadth of this Haggadah is chapter 5 of the Leaders Guide, "Short cuts through the Haggadah: how to pick and choose." Selections range from how to lead a "bare bones basic" seder (they even give you the timing) to a discourse on the halachic minimums of the seder, based on Orthodox standards. The guide also provides a sample of a longer, more creative seder, and picks the top 10 activities, readings, and songs. The most important sections of the seder are written in Hebrew and English, with transliterations so everyone can sing and participate. In general, the core text of the Haggadah is printed on right-hand pages, with commentary and ideas for embellishment on left-hand pages. Some elements of the seder get a whole new lease on life. The familiar spilling of drops of wine, for instance, fosters the discussion, "Should we feel joy at the downfall of our enemies?" The authors explain that traditionally, spilling the drops of wine can be understood as diminishing our cup of joy (wine) in sympathy with our enemies. Or, they point out, it can mean the opposite, reaffirming the vengeance of punishing those who have oppressed us. They then quote five opinions on either side of this argument, asking participants to discuss their own feelings.	The unusually eclectic essence of *A Different Night* also comes to light in the section on the Four Children. The wise, the wicked, the simple child and the one who does not know how to ask are depicted in 13 wonderfully reproduced glossy colored illustrations from haggadot from the United States, Europe, and Israel, spanning eight decades and many different artistic styles. The authors suggest that participants look at these disparate renditions and contemplate, "Which portrayal is most surprising, most disturbing, most appropriate? What conceptions of Jewish values and society are implicit in the various depictions?" And that¹s only one possibility: Zion and Dishon also provide an easy "screenplay" complete with suggested dialogue for the various characters. This Haggadah quotes many of the best-known teachers and thinkers on the contemporary Jewish scene. Rabbi David Hartman, reiterating the importance of parents as "storytellers," muses: "My parents bring me into contact with my historical roots, with my grandparents and a world other than me. "By returning to our origins and following the journey of our people we offer deeper resonance to our personal lives and develop a common language to share our fears and our dreams . . ." This Haggadah was meant for building joyous memories for everyone at the seder table.