An African Christmas
K-Gr. 2. The fun of dressing up as a scary monster is at the heart of this story about Afam, an Igbo boy in Nigeria, who wants to make a mask and take part in the village's traditional Christmas Mmo masquerade. Like all Onyefulu's colorful photo-essays, includingHere Comes Our Bride(2004), the photos show an upbeat mix of the traditional culture and the contemporary scene. In an introductory note about her childhood in Nigeria, Onyefulu remembers that Christmas meant new clothes, a church service, gifts, and also watching the deliciously scary Mmo dancing, and small text boxes scattered throughout the book fill in some of the cultural details. American kids may connect the celebrations with Halloween rather than Christmas, as Afam collects the materials for his costume, takes part in all the festivities, and, finally, dances in the street Mmo masquerade.Hazel RochmanCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved