The Button Box

A jeweled button becomes a doorway into the past for cousins Ava and Nadeem, who are dealing with questions about whether they should spend time together at school. Their grandmother tells them about Ester ibn Avram, a Sephardic Jewish girl in eighth-century Morocco who helps Abdur Rahman escape after his family loses power. The button carries the children and their grandmother's cat into Ester's world, where they must decide whether to help. The time-travel adventure draws on Jewish and Muslim history and emphasizes courage, family, and cooperation.