Avi and the Snowy Day

It's snowing in Jerusalem! How will Avi make it through the storm?

It hardly ever snows in Jerusalem, and the ambulances have fun playing in the snow but for their medics, shoveling and clearing ice is hard work. They have to be ready if there's an emergency.

Soon, Avi the Ambulance and his medic, Zack, are rushing to help people stuck in the snow, but the snow keeps coming down hard.

Uh,oh. Avi and Zack are stuck too! How will they rescue others when they need a little rescue themselves?

The third book in the beloved Avi the Ambulance series about emergency vehicles in Israel is based on the real life-saving work of Magen David Adom, Israel's Emergency Services System. Back matter includes an author's note about piku'ach nefesh, the importance of saving lives, and g'vurah, heroism. Also includes a photo and details of a real Magen David Adom ambulance along with an illustrated glossary of terms used in the book.

"The third in this charming series—Avi the Ambulance Goes To School and Avi the Ambulance To the Rescue are the first two—continues with the same successful characters...The charming story is followed by a descriptive page telling of the true work of the Magen David Adom, Israel’s ambulance, blood services, and disaster relief organization. A clear and beautifully illustrated layout of all the parts of an ambulance also follows, in addition to a full page of vocabulary explaining medical terms in English and some related Hebrew words.

Illustrations are filled with humor and whimsy, and the grayish tones fit perfectly with the wintry themes. The book is educationally useful in the classroom for units on Israel, winter, Jerusalem, helping, transportation, and vehicles and is highly recommended for preschool, ages 3 to 6."

-- Jewish Book Council

"Avi is the youngest ambulance in a Jerusalem garage filled with his family of emergency vehicles and human first responders of the Magen David Adom, Israel’s equivalent of the Red Cross.

They have fun on this very rare snowy day, but they never forget their purpose. Humans Zach and Leah shovel the driveway, and Avi checks for ice. When they get a call about an accident on the highway, they are ready to roll. Avi, with the Star of David prominently painted on his sides, speeds up and down hills, until they can’t see through the quickly falling snow and they start to skid. They slow down and safely arrive at the scene of the accident, where they immediately take care of injuries. But they can’t transport the injured people to the hospital, because Avi’s wheels are spinning uselessly. Avi’s big-sister ambulance comes to the rescue with the snow chains that Avi forgot. Everyone gets to the hospital, and all is well. The authors accessibly spotlight the work of Magen David Adom for young readers while maintaining both accuracy and humor. Decker’s softly hued cartoons capture Avi’s earnestness and sweetness without diverting from the message of the good work of the organization. Following the story is an informative afterword and a detailed vocabulary list illustrated with photographs.

A charming introduction to a little-known organization. (Picture book. 5-9)"

--Kirkus Reviews