ALA Booklist (Fri Mar 01 00:00:00 CST 2019)

Appreciators of multiculturalism will welcome this new addition to the existing corpus of books about global celebrations. What Do You Celebrate? includes some old favorites, like Chinese New Year and the Fourth of July, as well as some lesser-known traditions, such as Hanami and Guy Fawkes Day. The book is organized chronologically and takes readers across continents, month by month. Each celebration is given a two-page spread that includes a brightly colored illustration, an explication, photographs of people or salient objects, an inset with vocabulary words, and instructions for how to make, cook, or organize something essential to the celebration. In Bhutan, for example, children play a game called "degor" on Dagpai Losar (New Year), and a popular Halloween game in Ireland is "snap apple" that readers will be eager to try out. There's lots to like in this book that should be enjoyed for its cultural contributions, with a caveat against essentialist tendencies. Consider pairing with Every Month is a New Year (2018), by Marilyn Singer.

Horn Book (Thu Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2019)

In this companion to What's on Your Plate?, readers learn basic information about fourteen different holidays from around the world, including Carnaval (Brazil), Fastelavn (Denmark), and Dangpai Losar (Bhutan). Each spread includes a short list of holiday-specific traditions, historical or religious context, and a cooking or craft activity. Cheerful, color-filled illustrations and a magazine-style layout make this an approachable introduction to cultural understanding. Timeline. Glos., ind.

Kirkus Reviews

Celebrations the world over involve parades, foods, traditional clothing, masks, songs, and games. Information on 14 festivals, country maps, small photos, sidebars with holiday traditions (in the appropriate language, with pronunciations), and instructions for a craft or a recipe make up the jam-packed left-hand page of each spread. Colorful, detailed cartoon illustrations appear opposite. There are certainly interesting facts and activities, but careless errors (including a typo to be corrected in the second printing) and a decided slant toward Western Europe (five countries) diminish the volume's value. Opening with a monthly timeline, it offers a basic explanation of the lunar calendar, but this is not integrated into the overall schematic. This spread also includes a note about adult help for crafting and cooking. Many of the holidays are commonly celebrated in many places, and the author's failure to point out that Eid al-Fitr, for instance, is celebrated around the globe and not just in Egypt is a sad, missed opportunity. A few festivals are not often presented in books of this ilk, such as Bhutan's Dangpai Losar (New Year) and Laternenfest, held on St. Martin's Day in Germany. The last spread brings children from the different countries together and asks readers to create their own celebrations. Sadly, given the glancing notice necessitated by the format, there are no further resources included. Despite some bright spots, the lapses in information limit this book's effectiveness. (glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 7-10)