Praise
Reviews
Our Spectacular Sukkah
Community, connection, and a capricious turn of weather each play a role as a family sets out to create a homemade shelter in celebration of the Jewish Sukkot holiday. Illustrated by Sophia Vincent Guy. Publisher Candlewick Press. Available August 2026.
“In this sunny, celebratory picture book, a family builds a sukkah so wonderful that it deserves every superlative you might be inclined to heap upon it. They’re prepared to face the elements together—but not wholly for the weather that springs up, scattering bits of their shelter to the wind. As fortune would have it, though, their neighbors are happy to help them rebuild. In this multicultural picture book that introduces elements of Sukkot, including the importance of community, the bright illustrations demand attention. They include active autumnal flourishes, from the garden of flowers growing in the background to the mother’s blowing scarf.”
– Foreword Reviews, June 2026
“A lovely, rhythmic read-aloud that emphasizes the gift of community, filled with rich, layered visuals for children and caregivers to enjoy together…. Ludwig’s text is nimble and flowing, opting to explicate Sukkot’s cultural context in an endnote. Guy’s illustrations are terrifically textured, capturing the chill of urban autumn with gray skies and neutral-hued, densely packed houses, while illuminating her images with flowers, trees, and colorful decorations that sparkle and glow. VERDICT A lovely, rhythmic read-aloud that emphasizes the gift of community, filled with rich, layered visuals for children and caregivers to enjoy together.”
– School Library Journal, June 2026
“[T]his is a slice-of-life tale primarily focused on the sukkah, and newcomers to Sukkot will come away enlightened. The primary driver of the page-turns is the joyfully colorful art, with bold pops of yellow, red, pink, and green giving the visuals a celebratory feel….A quiet, loving introduction to a key Jewish holiday.” (Picture book. 3-7)
– Kirkus Reviews, June 2026
Rising
A child and mother wake early every Friday morning to mix and measure, knead and shape dough that will become challah bread. Sidura Ludwig’s debut picture book is a lyrical tribute to the ritual of making challah and preparing for Shabbat. Stunning illustrations by Sophia Vincent Guy. Publication Spring 2024.
Subtly Enthralling
“Drawing connections between kitchen chemistry, timeless traditions, and the pleasures of everyday life, Ludwig, making a picture book debut, establishes a subtly enthralling, adagio-like rhythm aptly punctuated with the word rising.”
– Publisher’s Weekly, starred review.
Delicately-Paced Narrative
“Ludwig … has fashioned a delicately-paced narrative to reflect the process of baking, of a child-parent relationship, of a child learning and of the process of life, which must be carefully, thoughtfully considered.”
– CM: Canadian Review of Materials
Poetry At Its Finest
“Replete with similes, metaphors, one-word line breaks, and beautiful imagery, Sidura Ludwig’s Rising is picture book poetry at its finest.”
– Sydney Taylor Shmooze
Perfect
“I can honestly say that this book belongs in any Jewish youngster’s early personal library. It is a perfect “book to read together for Sabbath.”
– Julie Ditton @story.book.lady
You Are Not What We Expected
Spanning 15 years in the lives of a multi-generational family and their neighbours, this remarkable collection draws an intimate portrait of a suburban Jewish community and illuminates the unexpected ways we remain connected during times of change.
Deeply Rendered
“Every single character is deeply rendered, every experience detailed beautifully, every story crafted with lucidity and poise…”
– Jennifer Manuel, author of The Heaviness of Things That Float.
“You Are Not What We Expected is a thoroughly entertaining and notable short-fiction debut from a compassionate author whose great strength is depicting the subtle (and not-so-subtle) tensions that simmer within families.”
– Miramachi Reader
Highly Visceral
“A gorgeous, highly visceral, deeply felt collection of linked stories about how families work — and don’t work — together. The Levine family is unforgettable.”
– Jami Attenberg, author of All This Could Be Yours
Engrossing
“I fell more and more in love with the people in these linked stories as I read. Each story reveals a striking new facet of experience, a shift in perspective, an unexpected complication. “
– Sarah Selecky, author of Radiant Shimmering Light
“There are mothers and daughters who can’t see eye-to-eye, brothers and sisters on separate trajectories, wives who have lost their husbands. There is a whole world in Thornhill. And Sidura Ludwig has captured it.”
– The Jewish Chronicle
“At turns funny and heartbreaking, as well as emotionally illuminating. It examines bonds between people – and the points when those bonds become too much to bear.”
– Ottawa Review of Books
Holding My Breath
Spanning three decades against the backdrop of the Jewish community in Winnipeg, Holding My Breath is a poignant coming-of-age tale told from the point of view of Beth Levy, the youngest in a household of two generations of strong Jewish women.
“Holding My Breath is calm and absorbing, its themes handled with delicacy. The writing is precise and each lyrical moment is earned.”
– The Telegraph (UK)
“Ludwig’s first novel is a warm, deftly rendered Jewish family saga… [T]he characters are distinctive and Ludwig has a talent for storytelling.”
– The Guardian
“Ludwig creates a group of characters who are complex, strong and distinct…. Her sensitive and detailed exploration of character, combined with her skill at evoking the specificities of time and place, create something to which everyone can relate”
– The Winnipeg Free Press
“Ludwig’s setting, the North End of Winnipeg, is richly drawn without intruding on the calm, quiet story…. Ludwig has the gifts to launch beyond the predictable.”
– The Globe and Mail
“[A] nicely observed debut… charming.”
– Publishers Weekly
“[T]he women shine as complex characters, furious and forgiving, resistant and resigned. Ludwig is particularly good at evoking atmosphere, the heaviness of summer in Winnipeg, the smell of holiday cooking, the oppressive measurements of meddlesome community…. [A] compelling and worthy first effort.”
– Books in Canada