Taylor Swift has entered her “Egypt era” as Jewish Swifties can now purchase a Taylor Swift-themed Haggadah (The Chosen People’s Version).
The Unofficial Taylor Swift Haggadah, written by Na’ama Ben-David and illustrated by Shelley Atlas Serber, features vibrant full-coloured pages, Taylor Swift facts and trivia and references to Swift’s discography, with parallels drawn between the singer’s music and the story of Passover.
The cover of the Taylor Swift Haggadah, written by Na'ama Ben-David and illustrated by Shelley Atlas Serber.
Three-time children’s book author Ben-David said the inspiration for the themed Haggadah came through her teenage daughter, who is an avid Swiftie: “She loves talking about Taylor Swift; her music, her lyrics and the inspirational messages she gets from listening to the albums,” Ben-David said. “When we started talking about Pesach, she remarked that there are a lot of parallels between the story and themes of Pesach and Taylor Swift's music - and the idea was born.”
The Haggadah utilises a storyline in Swift’s album “Folklore” to explore the classic Passover story of The Four Sons, whose characters include the wise, the wicked, the simple and the one who doesn’t know how to ask. By paralleling aspects of Swift’s songs with the time-worn narrative of The Four Sons, this Haggadah explores the foundational themes of Passover in a way teens and tweens might better understand.
With the table of contents called a “setlist” and the price of the book on Amazon set to $19.89 (if you know, you know), few Swift-related touchstones have been left unturned in this complete functioning Haggadah.
Illustrator and designer Shelley Atlas Serber said: “The vibrant and modern design of the Haggadah was inspired by Taylor Swift's worldwide hits. When we all sit down at our Seder tables around the world, we share the same songs that we’ve enjoyed together for years - the hits of the Jewish people.”