When I was a child, my mother would get out her button box when I was especially bored or sick. It was an old cookie tin filled with buttons from simple to sparkling, and I loved looking at all the buttons and stringing them onto thread. The button box in this book, though, is truly next level.

The Button Box
by Bridget Hodder and
Fawzia Gilani-Williams.
Illustrated by Harshad Marathe.

Kar-Ben, 2022

ISBN 978-1728423975

Read from a library copy.
Ebook available on Hoopla.

Cousins Ava (who is Jewish) and Nadeem (who is Muslim) have always been good friends as well.  Now, though, they’re both experiencing bullying at school, with the bullies being especially hard on Nadeem, but even well-meaning classmates suggesting that things would just be easier if the cousins didn’t hang out together at school.  They’re still distressed about this when they go to visit their Granny Buena after school.  As the best grandmothers do, she tells them a story that will both distract and enlighten them, one that’s tied to a specific button in the family button box.  And because Granny Buena can trace their Sephardic Jewish ancestry back for hundreds of years, she’s able to tell them a story of their ancestor Ester ibn Evram, who lived in Morocco circa the 750s.  

Then, something truly magical occurs between Ester’s beautiful button and Granny Buena’s cat Sheba – and Ava and Nadeem find themselves in Ester’s Morocco, when Ester is just about their age.  Helpfully, the magic has dressed them appropriately, given them the ability to understand the language, and even set them up as merchant cousins whose visit was expected.  Even Sheba the cat is here and familiar to Ester! They don’t, though, have the memories or background knowledge of those cousins (unlike in Shirley Vernick’s Ripped Away.) They do know from Granny’s story, though, that Ester really needs to find a way to help the men she just met at the market – one of whom is the real historical Prince Abdur Rahman, who if he escapes the enemies currently chasing him down, will go on to found a kingdom known for peace, equality among religions, and great expansion of knowledge.  

It’s really quite easy for time travel stories like these to head off the track in one of two directions – either the visitors from the present day have nothing to do but observe the goings-on, or their modern-day perspective is so vital that the hapless historical characters would clearly be lost without them.  Here, our modern kids have an important role to play, but it’s Ester’s strength and determination that really wins the day. Faith is important to all of the children as well, who recall important precepts from their faith to guide them through tough decisions, especially emphasizing peace, love, and the importance of helping others. An afterward gives more historical information about Sephardic Jews, Prince Abdul Rahman, while a glossary lists the Ladino words that Granny Buena uses.  

This would be a great step up for Magic Treehouse fans – a bit more complex in world-building and characterization, and definitely more enjoyable for parents reading to or with their kids.  I’m looking forward to more adventures with Ava and Nadeem, Granny Buena, Sheba and the button box.