Should I Tell Mor?

This collection includes five stories that tell of children’s experiences. Young readers will easily identify with Rivka Magen’s heroes, who all face a moral dilemma. The stories deal with children who find themselves in awkward situations: they have done wrong, or have been wronged, and the powerful emotional experience is not easily forgotten

In the first story, Amit unwittingly causes his classmate Mor to be injured, but is afraid to admit his responsibility. The second story is about disappointment and realization: Itai invited his class teacher to come to his birthday party; she promised, but did not come. Only at the end of the school year does Itai realize that the teacher had simply forgotten, because grownups sometimes forget what they promise. The third story is about crime and punishment: Shirley has stolen money from her mother’s purse and has been found out and is deeply distressed. The fourth story is about how Nimrod stood up to the class bully, and the fifth is about wronging another person and the ensuing nagging of a bad conscience: Ro’ee has found a ticket for the show “The Wizard of Oz,” and before going into the theater he sees a boy crying bitterly because he has lost his ticket. Ro’ee could have returned it to him but did not. The bad conscience that ensued kept Ro’ee from enjoying a very nice show.

This book was listed as one of the most popular among Israeli elementary-aged school children in 1998, and also won the Ze’ev Prize.