Illustrated with charming wit, this graphic novel builds a bridge from generation to generation, between today and the past. We follow eleven-year-old Benni and his grandmother, Bubbe Rosa, through Brooklyn and Manhattan as they do the shopping for Friday's pre-Shabbat dinner.
This very sensitive and seemingly simple story tells of Jewish identity in a vibrant, big city; at the same time, it is about change, letting go, and finding each other. Bubbe Rosa's relationship to the city is complex—nothing is as she remembers it, and she looks grimly at the world around her. Through little Benni's open, kindly gaze, the city and his grandmother seem very different. As they walk, snippets of Bubbe's memories of her childhood in Germany and her arrival in nineteen-fifties’ Brooklyn come to light. Piece by piece, a picture of Bubbe's life emerges from the scraps of memory, explaining why she is so grumpy. The story culminates in a reunion with her first love, Gershon the baker. On their way home to dinner, Bubbe Rosa and her grandson Benni find a new and wonderful approach to each other's lives and the opportunity to talk about them.