In the News

A memorable seder from the Civil War and other Passover books

Reviewed by: ELLEN SCHUR BROWN Editor, Family Section, reprinted from the Cleveland Jewish News

Private Joel and the Sewell Mountain Seder. By Bryna J. Fireside. Illus. by Shawn Costello. Kar-Ben Publishing. Minneapolis, Minn. 2008. 48 pp. paperback. $6.95.

It was shaping up to be a lonely Passover for Private J.A. Joel, a soldier in the Union army during the Civil War. So, Joel and 20 other Jewish soldiers in his regiment from Ohio, stationed in the Sewell Mountains in West Virginia, asked their commander for permission to hold a Passover seder.

Private Joel and the Sewell Mountain Seder is an outstanding book for young readers about the holiday and the bonds of our tradition. And it’s based on a true story!

With historically accurate details, author Bryna J. Fireside paints a picture of lonely young boys who have never been away from home before, much less cooked or prepared a seder n a job left to mothers or sisters. They somehow assemble the chicken soup, lamb, hard cider and vegetables for their meal. Unable to find any horseradish, they settle for something a farmer dug up that he said would be “bitter enough.”

The unit’s sutler (a peddler who sold supplies to the troops) ships matzah in barrels from Cincinnati, and he includes a few haggadot. The soldiers’ attempted matzah balls are dubbed a new war weapon, but praying together for all slaves who long for freedom, they create an unforgettable seder.

Curiously, Fireside adds three fictional characters to the story, whom she describes as “former slaves who had joined the 23rd Regiment.” Negro slaves, freed and otherwise, fought on both sides of the Civil War but certainly NOT in integrated regiments and presumably not sharing a dinner table. The African-American slaves represent another generation of free men, but strain the credulity of the story.

Still, remembering slavery in America is an important message to young readers, and it accentuates the relevance of the Passover story today when there are still places where people are not free.

FIRESIDE, Bryna J. Private Joel and the Sewell Mountain Seder. illus. by Shawn Costello. 48p. CIP. Lerner/Kar-Ben. 2008. PLB $16.95. ISBN 978-0-8225-7240-4. LC 2007005275.

Gr 2–5—This Civil War story about Private J.A. Joel and 20 other Jewish soldiers in the 23rd Ohio Regiment is based on an article written by Joel and published in the Jewish Messenger in 1866. The third-person narration is presented in eight short, easy-to-read chapters. Bored and homesick while guarding a railroad line in West Virginia, the soldiers secure their commander's permission to commemorate Passover. They pay a sutler (traveling merchant) to ship matzoh to them and obtain ingredients for the traditional meal. They find an egg for the Seder plate and use carrot tops in place of parsley, a brick for chariest, a weed for bitter herbs, and hard cider for wine. Seated around a white-clothed table, they sing the Four Questions, tell the Passover story, and join together in song. Fireside's concluding note discusses her decision "to include some former slaves to share in this celebration." Matzoh ball soup is placed on the menu, providing a humorous subplot and a connection to contemporary readers. Costello's vibrant paintings blend realistic and abstract styles, filling the spreads with color. Readers will need some background on the Civil War and Passover to navigate this story, making this book most useful in collections that support Jewish studies.—Laura Scott, Farmington Community Library, MI.

A U.S. Civil War Story— for Passover

Private Joel and the Sewell Mountain Seder by Bryna J. Fireside; Kar-Ben Publishing, San Diego Jewish World, Volume 2, Number 82.

By Sherry Berlin

SAN DIEGO—Kar-Ben Publishing has released a new book for Passover this spring season, Private Joel and the Sewell Mountain Seder by Bryna J. Fireside. Rarely do we hear about Jewish participation in American history, particularly in history as early as the Civil War. Private J.A. Joel is a Union soldier, fighting in the Civil War in 1862. After defeating the Confederate forces at Carnifax Ferry, West Virginia, Private Joel and his unit, including twenty-one Jewish soldiers, spend the spring hunkered down near the Sewell Mountains.

This story begins two weeks before Passover, as J.J. and his Jewish friends are wondering if "Old Rosy" (Commander William S. Rosecrans) will allow them to hold a seder. Old Rosy recognizes that most of the young soldiers in his regiment have never been away from their families, and so not only does he give them permission to have the seder, but leave time to prepare. He announces to them, also, that he would be delighted to attend.

As word spreads through the regiment about the celebration, three Negro soldiers who had joined their regiment, approach Private Joel, "me and my buddies know something about your Hebrew Passover." Caleb Berger had been a slave to Master Berger, who was Jewish. He had taught Caleb to read some English and Hebrew and had helped him earn his freedom. He and his two friends Abraham and Samuel, who were still slaves, had escaped to fight the war "to free us" and found the 23rd Regiment.

During the two weeks before Passover, the Jewish soldiers and the three Negro recruits figure out how they will get the supplies needed for their seder. Mr. Greenberg, a Jewish man who traveled with the troops and sold them supplies, told them he would send back matzoh on the next supply train. When the train arrives there is enough matzoh for the week and some Haggadot and prayer books. Everyone works together to gather the proper foods for the seder plate and the meal from nearby farmers. They found cider that had been sitting around all winter, that they could use for wine. So they celebrated their seder with 27 men and an extra chair for "the stranger." This was a seder that no one would forget.

This book, based on a true story that appeared in The Jewish Messenger from April, 1866, is a wonderful way to teaching about the Jewish involvement in American History. Through Fireside's imagination, we get to see what a seder would have been like under those circumstances. This year as we sit at our seders, it is good to be reminded that there are always people who are not free. This book gives us a story from the Civil War showing that the Jewish people have never forgotten how good it is to be free.

And there is even a local angle, though its not mentioned in the book: General Rosecrans was the man for whom Rosecrans Boulevard in Point Loma was named. After the Civil War, he came to San Diego and was among the city leaders active in trying to bring a railroad here.

Berlin is the librarian at San Diego Jewish Academy.

Links to other reviews and interviews:

http://cynleitichsmith.livejournal.com/85097.html

http://www.thereportergroup.org/article.aspx?aID=310