What Do You Celebrate?: Holidays and Festivals Around the World

This is a wonderfully colorful and informative book about holidays around the world! That said, parents should be aware of a few things that the text mentions, so that they can be prepared to answer any questions from their little ones. The Holi holiday page mentions an evil king trying to have his son killed, and the son’s sister trying to kill him by holding him in a fire. The Purim holiday page mentions an evil prime minister planning to “kill all the Jews.” The Guy Fawkes holiday page mentions that “thirteen men plotted to blow up a government building.” These are NOT criticisms of the book. I think the way these topics are explained is appropriate for most children in the targeted age range. I’m just posting this information as a “heads up” to parents, so that they know what to expect.

Used in my ESL classroom to get to know my students and talk about their nationalities and cultures

What fun to receive this book! Filled with illustrations and facts from celebrations around the world, told in a simple way. Each celebration has an activity that is fun and inclusive for the family - a craft idea, a simple recipe, etc. Each has a few examples of the traditions for the holiday (like red envelopes for Chinese New Year). I bought for my grandson, but learned a few things myself in reading it! Lovely and inclusive book.

Good for kids learning about new year celebrations

Libro bastante didáctico para aprender acerca de celebraciones. Fácil de leer y con buenas ilustraciones y actividades por desarrollar. Lo recomiendo para niños curiosos.

With 14 holidays from five continents (Australia doesn't appear), What Do You Celebrate? showcases diverse characters celebrating some holidays you may know and some you may not. The opening two-page spread is an introduction to what a holiday is, accompanied by a timeline of the year with each of the featured holidays listed alongside a child you'll find on that holiday's page. Each celebration covers two pages. An explanation of the holiday, a craft or recipe, and some key words are on the left-hand page; children celebrating the holiday are depicted on the right-hand page. We were particularly excited to recognize some holidays and pleasantly surprised to learn about ones we'd never heard of. Among those we recognized were Chinese New Year, Holi (though we didn't know it was called that), and Laternenfest. We've been reading Chinese New Year books lately for obvious reasons; I've always been curious about the Indian holiday where colors are thrown (that's all I knew about it before reading); and a friend had celebrated Laternenfest in Germany for the first time this winter, so we were excited to know more about it! Some new holidays for us included Dangpai Losar in Bhutan and Fastelavn in Denmark; T has very specific plans about celebrating Dangpai Losar by playing the stone toss game whose instructions are included. What sets this bright picture book apart from other holiday books we've read are the crafts and recipes. For each holiday, a simple craft or recipe or even charitable project is presented: you could bake Hamantaschen for Purim or make a Chinese New Year drum from paper plates or collect food donations in celebration of Eid al-Fitr. Everything is easy enough to do with common materials and children of any age. What Do You Celebrate? is an effective introductory tool for teaching holidays around the world and developing intercultural understanding. And it's just plain fun - T and I both like the sounds of Hamantaschen and plan to bake them soon! I received a copy of this in exchange for an honest review. This is also posted on my blog: Glass of Wine, Glass of Milk

A great introduction to the varied yet similar holidays and festivals across cultures and the world. Even if the celebration is not specific to your culture, the overlying message is that although we are unique, we are all connected by our similarities. It is a very inspiring and accessible book about diversity, acceptance and the human spirit. I highly recommend this book. It is so relevant and full of joy and jubilation. The accompanying illustrations are beautifully detailed and depict a wide range of peoples. I love the mix collage aspect of the art!

I used this book to supplement my child's education by using to teach about celebrations that occur around the world in order to make my child more knowledgeable about other cultures.

Livro muito interessante, bonito e didático. Foi presente para uma professora bilíngue, que irá usá-lo em suas aulas

There was a lot of print for younger children, too much to read all of it. But the illustrations are lovely and the children find them very engaging.

Sweet book! Great quality!