Kar-Ben Publishing, an award-winning children’s book

publisher Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

providing a growing

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

library for children, is a division of

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

-based

Lerner Publishing Group Lerner Publishing Group, based in Minneapolis in the U.S. state of Minnesota since its founding in 1959, is one of the largest independently owned children's book publishers in the United States. With more than 5,000 titles in print, Lerner Publi ...

. Similar publishers that also specialize in the genre include: Apples & Honey Press, Kalaniot Books and Green Beans Books. The company had its genesis in 1975, when two friends, Judyth Groner and Madeline Wikler, founded Kar-Ben Copies, Inc. to publish ''My Very Own Haggadah'', a children's

Passover Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holiday that celebrates the Biblical story of the Israelites escape from slavery in Egypt, which occurs on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan, the first month of Aviv, or spring. ...

haggadah The Haggadah ( he, הַגָּדָה, "telling"; plural: Haggadot) is a Jewish text that sets forth the order of the Passover Seder. According to Jewish practice, reading the Haggadah at the Seder table is a fulfillment of the mitzvah to each J ...

they had created. Now in its 30th anniversary printing, it went on to sell over two million copies. The company is named after the two founders’ youngest children, Madeline’s daughter Karen and Judye's son Ben. Over the next 27 years, under the leadership of the founders, Kar-Ben published more than 150 books for Jewish children and their families, the creative work of over 60 authors and illustrators. In recognition of their "outstanding contributions to the field of

children’s literature Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader. Children's ...

," Judye and Madeline were awarded the prestigious "Body of Work Award" by the

Sydney Taylor Book Award The Sydney Taylor Book Award recognizes the best in Jewish children's literature. Medals are awarded annually for outstanding books that authentically portray the Jewish experience. The award was established in 1968 by the Association of Jewish L ...

committee. In 2001, Kar-Ben was purchased by Lerner Publishing Group. Under the leadership of owner Adam Lerner and publisher Joni Sussman, Kar-Ben Publishing now publishes over sixteen new titles of Jewish content each year, for children from pre-school through middle school, both fiction and

non-fiction Nonfiction, or non-fiction, is any document or media content that attempts, in good faith, to provide information (and sometimes opinions) grounded only in facts and real life, rather than in imagination. Nonfiction is often associated with b ...

. Kar-Ben has created many award-winning children's books on such subjects as Jewish holidays, crafts, folktales, and contemporary stories and picture books. Many have become popular classics including ''The Mouse in the Matzah Factory'', ''Once Upon a Shabbos'', the Sammy Spider series, ''The Secret of Priest's Grotto'', and the best-selling book '' Six Million Paper Clips.''

References

{{Publisher-stub Book publishing companies based in Minnesota Publishing companies established in 1975 American companies established in 1975