Hereville: How Mirka Caught a Fish

Written by: Barry Deutsch

First line: Hashem has blessed us so much.

Why you should read this book: Irrepressible young adolescent Mirka is ready for her next adventure, but her stepmother has already chosen for her: it will be an adventure in babysitting her younger stepsister, with whom Mirka is already annoyed after catching her burying photographs of Mirka's late mother in order to confuse the Angel of Death. Although they're not supposed to go into the woods, Mirka and Layele do exactly that, eventually encountering a magic wish-giving fish who plays by his own rules and holds a lot of anger over events that took place long before Mirka was born. To protect her stepsister and her stepmother, Mirka will have to be stronger, faster, and more clever than the magical beings that inhabit her world, and she'll have to do it all while observing the Sabbath and keeping it holy.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You have a truly wicked stepmother.