Holidays Around the World: Celebrate Diwali: With Sweets, Lights, and Fireworks
Grade 1–3—These titles balance historical perspective with contemporary cultural significance in describing the holidays.Diwalifocuses on the Hindu celebration in India but mentions observance by the Sikh and Jain faiths and also shows customs in four other countries. All texts capture well the spirit of the holidays, conveying inRamadan, for example, the holy purpose of fasting and the shared joy in feasting. While the first-person plural texts create a mostly inclusive tone, they present Native Americans as "other" by using the third person to explain that Thanksgiving is a day of mourning for some Indians whereas others hold ceremonies of thanks. Each spread features up to three high-quality color photographs, a paragraph of body text, and a line of much larger text that creates a focal point and supports contextual understanding. Many cultures are represented through photos and captions, including five continents inRamadan. Each book includes a map showing where the photos were taken, along with extras such as games, recipes, a prayer, or historical time lines, and ends with a page of additional cultural and historical information for adults. These visually appealing volumes would update any multicultural or holiday collection. Consider Diane Hoyt-Goldsmith'sCelebrating Ramadan(Holiday House, 2001) and Laurie Halse Anderson'sThank You, Sarah: The Woman Who Saved Thanksgiving(S & S, 2002) as companions.—Julie R. Ranelli, Kent Island Branch Library, Stevensville, MDCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.--This text refers to theHardcoveredition.