Cover of a children's book titled 'Mixed-Up Mooncakes' featuring a girl holding a mooncake. In the background, four diverse children are engaging in different activities: one holding a red paper lantern, one cheerfully waving, one talking on a phone, and one holding a plant. The illustration is colorful and cheerful.

Written Christina Matula & Erica Lyons, Illustrated by Tracy Subisak

Mixed-Up Mooncakes

It’s time for Ruby and her family to celebrate two extra-special harvest holidays.

Association of Jewish Libraries’ Picks for Best Jewish Holiday Books of 2024

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About this book

It’s time for Ruby and her family to celebrate two extra-special harvest holidays. For the Mid-Autumn Festival, she and Nainai pick out fruit, nuts, and red chrysanthemums from the store. And with Zayde, Ruby buys a lulav and etrog from the market for Sukkot.

But something is missing to truly combine these two celebrations. Can Ruby figure out the perfect way to blend the Jewish holiday of Sukkot and the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival?

Authors Christina Matula and Erica Lyons, along with talented artist Tracy Subisak, have created a glorious homage to two important holidays while also highlighting the importance of creative problem solving.

The details

RELEASE DATE: September 10. 2024

AGES: 4-8

PAGES: 32

FORMAT: Hardcover

PUBLISHER: Quill Tree, Harper Collins

ISBN-13: 9780063254718

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Praise

  • "The colorful digital illustrations include Chinese brushwork—a lovely touch. The authors and illustrator effectively convey the fundamentals of both holidays to newcomers while also providing readers of Chinese and Jewish descent with a wonderful mirror that reflects their experiences."

    — Kirkus, starred review

  • "Matula and Lyons describe the autumnal events and interpersonal relationships in affectionate prose, and Subisak’s digital, sumi ink, Japanese watercolor, and Chinese brush and pastel images employ transparent washes for scenes of daylight celebration, deepening to shadowy moments of invocation under a full moon."

    — Publishers Weekly, starred review

  • "Not only will this inspirational story appeal to readers of all ages, it also contains educational value by providing insights into the traditional celebrations of Sukkot and Mid-Autumn Festival. The illustrations fit perfectly and help to tell the story."

    — SLJ, starred review

  • "Will surely invite readers to consider the cultural combinations they're familiar with in an increasingly multicultural world."

    — Booklist

  • "A suc­cess­ful effort to blend these two mean­ing­ful hol­i­days togeth­er. Beau­ti­fully illus­trat­ed."

    — Jewish Book Council

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Book of Life Podcast with Erica Lyons and Christina Matula

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Resources For Educators & Readers

A word search puzzle titled 'Mixed-Up Mooncakes' on a red background, with a list of words including 'Autumn', 'Jade', 'Moon', and 'Preservative'. There is a small illustration of two children eating mooncakes at the bottom.

Activity Sheets for Mixed-Up Mooncakes

Download and print these Mixed-Up Mooncakes worksheets for use at home or in the classroom. From Erica Lyons website.

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Illustration of two children and an adult baking mixed-up mooncakes together in a kitchen. A baking tray with mooncakes is shown at the bottom right corner.

Mixed-Up Mooncakes Recipe

Now you can make Ruby’s mooncakes and you don’t have to wait for Sukkot or Mid-Autumn Festival! From Erica Lyons website.

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Tracy Subisak with short brown hair and a plaid shirt holding children's books, standing on a grassy area with trees and a bridge in the background.

About Tracy

Tracy Subisak is the mixed-Taiwanese American author and illustrator of Sorry, Snail and award-winning Jenny Mei Is Sad. She has also illustrated many picture books including The Inactivity Book, written by Kyo Maclear and Amah Faraway, written by Margaret Chiu Greanias. Her books have been featured in publications such as the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal and PBS Books. Tracy currently resides in Portland, Oregon with her family and copious amounts of plants.

MORE ABOUT TRACY