Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

Just Like Queen Esther is a beautifully written and inspiring book. The message is powerful and encouraging, and the illustrations are absolutely stunning.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy

I thought this book was super charming and had a beautiful message. I enjoyed the illustrations. I wish I had a child that I could share this book with. Truly a beautiful tale!

I received a copy of this eBook from netGalley for a honest review.

A beautiful story about a girl becoming herself and learning the story of Queen Esther. Atara was born in a boy's body but is a girl and where's a crown wherever she goes to tell the world. After playing Queen Ester she learns that she can be herself at school without the crown and everything is ok.

The format was so weird as an ebook that every few letters were missing and unable to read the pages of the book

I recieved a free eARC of this book. Thank you for the opportunity to read it,

This is a sweet, cute book about a young trans girl, who is able to use the story of Queen Esther and her synagogue’s Purim celebration, to become more comfortable with her identity and become more willing to trust in herself vs a security object (in this case, her crown). It’s nice to see a book about a trans character where being trans isn’t the sum total of the plot. And a lot of kids will relate, whether they’re cis or trans, Jew or gentile.

The art in this was absolutely delightful. The writing was a little clunky but the story of a young trans girl finding confidence in herself through a Jewish tale was really lovely.

Gosh, I grew up loving the story of Queen Ester, I did not totally love this though. The story just seems really choppy and does not really have flow. I don’t totally know the reason for the book….i know it’s a children’s book, but normally there is more there.

What I liked: I liked that the main character was able to connect to a biblical figure in such a way. Atara grows into herself and she loves herself (without a crown) by the end of the

What I didn’t like (other than what is listed above): the little girl is transgender, I have no issue with that, but I feel like the author just kept putting that on almost every page to remind us. We know. That actually was part of the issue with the flow.

This sweet book uses an unique premise to discuss confidence in one's identity.

The story is about a Trans youngster, who has chosen her own name, Atara, which means crown. She always wears a crown everywhere so that people will know that she is a girl. Despite the title, this is not really a Purim story. Although the book is set during the holiday, Esther's story is told in just two brief paragraphs when Atara's mom reads her a new Purim book. However, after hearing about Esther, who bravely told people that she was Jewish, Atara compares herself to the queen. They both had a secret about themselves that they revealed to the world. This book is a beautiful way to instill self confidence for LGBT children or any youngster who is worried that they may not be accepted for who they really are.

I am in love with this book. I love that this steps beyond the typical Purim book and encourages everyone to embody the power of Queen Ester.
I also love the diversity in the story and transgender representation!!

Atara is a young girl who wears a crown. One night before bed, her mom reads her a book about a special queen in history, Queen Esther. Queen Esther was a Jewish woman in a time when Jews were in captivity and met with hostility. The story of Esther can be found in the Bible. After Atara hears the story, she is mesmerized by Esther's life. Her school puts on a play based on the Jewish holiday of Purim through this, Atara will soon learn a lot about herself in this engaging children's story.

I read this book to my 11-year-old daughter, who was already familiar with the book of Esther who was already familiar with the book of Esther in the Bible, and she enjoyed it. She thought the illustrations were nice, and the story held her attention. She gave this book a sign of approval. This book is a nice introduction to Purim and the story of Esther. Young girls can relate to Atara and Queen Esther.
Thank you, NetGalley, for this arc.

I normally don’t research the background of a book, but I especially haven’t ever had to research the intent behind a children’s book. I had to with Just Like Queen Esther. When I first did a read through of the book something just felt off to me. Maybe because the headlines were talking about the real crisis facing transgender youth in the United States. The applause and acceptance that Atara receives is fiction and the book is listed on NetGalley as being non-fiction.

I took a break from the book. I came back to it about three weeks later and I received the book differently. For us in the United States, our world is changing daily again and kids will need a Queen Esther to keep them going in the days ahead.

Just Like Queen Esther is bright yellow and that theme is continued throughout the book. The illustrations by Ren Yehud Newman are simplistic. The text and story are easy to understand. It is a quick read with a simple message.

Simple, but cute. I feel like it could have leaned a bit more into the Queen Esther story. However, I loved the ending and I think this was a nice book for kids. The additional crown coloring page was lovely as well.

This is such a cute and sweet read about a little trans girl who comes out to her mum.
I love that this book exists, and I hope many little trans kids find joy in it.

Just Like Queen Esther is about a young transgirl's experience finding comfort in a traditional Jewish story. A compassionate tale that encourages a friendly relationship between the LGBTQ+ and Jewish communities, I recommend this story for Jewish families with LGBTQ+ youth, or liberal classrooms that want to increase diversity in their curriculum. This book has a reading level for children ages 5-8, but could be read aloud to younger children. Lastly, this book can establish a safe environment for a young child to feel comfortable telling an adult parent or teacher that they identify as a different gender.

The illustrations of this story celebrate round shapes such as curls, noses, and tutus, with a cartoonish art style that gives extra love to fun childhood fashions, like tutus, crowns, and costume jewelry. Atara is more than just a child who likes to dress as girl - she plays basketball, acts in the school play, and spends time with her mother reading and doing chores, and all these 3-dimensional details are illustrated to emphasize the well-roundedness of the protagonist.

Some sections of this book have a lengthy chunk of text that causes an abrupt shift in pacing. I wish these portions had more illustrations to help reduce the abruptness of the pacing shift. A young reader may reach these full-page portions of text and lose motivation.

Thanks to Ari Moffic, Kerry Olitzky, and Jessica Kingsley Publishers for a free ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

I LOVE THIS BOOK!!! In all honesty, this book reminds me of Drama, but for younger readers. This book is utterly perfect for kids that can or cannot relate to Atara, and my genuine hope is that all kids read this book and adore it as much as I do. Additionally, I love how accepting each character in this book was. It is so wildly important for young and impressionable readers to see characters such as these so that they can mirror them. Lastly (because I have literally nothing bad to say about this book), the illustrations captured the elegance, joy, and beauty of Atara and her story.
Bravo!!!

A wonderful story tackling several tough topics at a level appropriate for any child. This story was sweet and skillfully written.

This is a sweet story of child realizing who they are after reading the story of Queen Ester. It is short but sweet and perfect for small children.

That was so adorable!!! Atara is the sweetest and cutest, and I love the way she believed in herself and her mom did too! Also I always love when there's a book in a book haha!

I love this. It's such a great lesson about being yourself and knowing who you are. I especially loved how she used the crown at first to get confidence until she realized she didn't need it anymore.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

This is a really cute book. I think with all the differences going on in our world in this day and age that this would be a good addition to any kids library! The graphics were super cute and the writing was easy to follow