A humorously expressive ox named Shoshi is accustomed to life on Simon’s farm, where she helps Simon plow the fields for six days a week before resting on Shabbat. On Shabbat, Shoshi enjoys sweet hay, fresh water, and playtime with Simon’s grandchildren. When Simon grows too old to plow, he sells Shoshi to a young man named Yohanan, who is not Jewish. A hard worker, Yohanan yokes Shoshi to his plow for six days. But on the seventh day, when Yohanan comes for her, Shoshi refuses to walk to the field. Yohanan grumpily finds other work to do, paying no mind to the beauty of the world around him. Shoshi’s behavior continues in this pattern—six days of work followed by a day of refusal—until one day Yohanan spies Simon walking with his grandchildren and realizes it must be Shabbat. That’s when everything clicks. Observing Simon’s happiness and Shoshi peacefully napping in the hay, Yohanan thinks that clever Shoshi may have the right idea. Perhaps Yohanan ought to take a day to rest, to spend leisurely time with his family, and to appreciate his blessings. And so he does. All of the humans have brown skin in this story based on a midrash about Rabbi Yohanan ben Torta that affirms both the sacredness of Shabbat and the necessity of rest.     (Ages 3-8)