Afikotective

Written and illustrated by Amalia Hoffman

Kar-Ben Publishing, January 2024

It’s time for new book news! Author Illustrator Amalia Hoffman kicked off 2024 with a new picture book! Amalia is joining us today to talk about her newest project. Welcome, Amalia!

Tell us about your brand-new picture book, Afikotective. What is it about?

A family of bears is getting ready for the Passover seder, preparing all the items for the seder plate. When the time comes in the seder for hiding the afikomen, Grandma breaks the middle matzah into two pieces. She hides the bigger piece, the afikomen, that the kids will eagerly search for later in the seder. It’s a good thing one little bear has turned his toy elephant into an Afiko-Sniffer! The invention sniffs out apples in a bowl, eggs in the fridge, and horseradish in the pantry, but can it help find the afikomen?

Amalia, this story sounds super adorable! I love learning about Passover in such a fun way.

Where did you get the idea for Afikotective?

When I grew up in Jerusalem, we used to attend the seder over at a family’s relative. The hosts used to hide the afikomen (the piece of matzah that is hidden during the Passover seder) in the most obscure places. One year, they hid it in a cactus planter that stood on the balcony. Another year, it was hidden wrapped in a towel by the bathtub. It was really challenging to find. But I was determined because finding the afikomen was rewarded with a small amount of money. At one seder, I stood up and announced: “I’m the afikomen detective!” I guess that this is what gave me the idea for the story.

So this picture book springs right from your own childhood! That’s pretty cool.

How did you decide to write and illustrate this book?

I wanted to create a book about Passover but to write a story that is fun and funny and will resonate with little kids’ sense of humor. So I came up with the idea that Afikotective and his “helper,” the Afiko Sniffer, look for the afikomen in all the wrong places, until Afikotective decides to fix his afiko-sniffer and finds the afikomen in the toolbox, that could be something that will put a smile on the face of a 3–7-year-old. I was always in love with anything pop-up, like pop-up books and cards. But producing a pop-up book is very expensive so I decided to illustrate the book by cutting elements so they look like they pop up off the page. I started by cutting elements out of paper and positioning them on boards. Later, I added color to my figuring and the background. I started using lighting to see how the shadow will play a role in the final photograph. Then, I incorporated other elements such as string, yarn, etc. For the cover, I painted a faux matzah.

Your illustrating style is unique, intricate, and captivating! I imagine it takes quite a long time to get all the illustrations just right. Well done!

How have you been celebrating the January 2024 release of Afikotective?

I decided to plan book launch not in January but closer to Passover. But on the day of January 2^nd, when the book launched, I held it close to my heart and sniffed it. I love the smell of a freshly printed book. I also sniffed the flowers I got from my family.

Awwww, you are absolutely right! That new book smell is so enticing! Congratulations on your new book!

What’s next for you, Amalia?

I am working on a picture book about peace. I have a board book about the Jewish holiday of Shavuot launching in May. I am working on a picture book about peace and another picture book. I am also experimenting in different illustration style, using paper tissue collage.

Wow, you are busy! We look forward to hearing more about your upcoming book projects!

Thank you, Amalia, for visiting and sharing your new book with us.

You can see Amalia and her puppet helper Elfie in this sample of the presentation she does for Afikotective. Very cute!

See below for more information about Amalia and her new book. Afikotective is available now (the press release says Spring).