Lucky Penny

An Association of Jewish Libraries' Holiday Highlights title for Fall 2024

"Elegantly weaves lessons about the symbols and rituals associated with the Jewish New Year into a story about fortitude and friendship." -Jewish Book Council

"Newly independent readers will identify with Penny's situation."-Booklist

Do we need a charm to get good luck? Or do we make it for ourselves?

Penny Posner knows everything there is to know about good luck. Every day she wears her lucky bracelet on her wrist, her lucky socks on her feet, and Ferdinand, her lucky frog keychain, on her belt loop. And today she needs all the luck she can get so she'll be chosen to blow the shofar at the school's Rosh Hashanah picnic.

But when she picks up a lucky penny, her best friend Mara warns her that it's actually bad luck, because it was face down. As everything starts to go wrong, Penny will try anything to change her luck, but all she does is make matters worse. Penny needs to shift her perspective on luck and fix her mistakes before the picnic and before she ruins her friendship with Mara, so she can make a fresh start for the new year.

A comedic tale of superstition and how our perception influences our experiences and the world around us, with bouncy illustrations by Jon Davis.