Review by Booklist Review
This colorful book introduces a variety of harvest festivals and customs around the world. Two rhymed couplets on each double-page spread are written from the viewpoint of people telling others about their harvest celebrations, while an adjacent sentence or two supplies additional information. Unfamiliar words are accompanied by brief pronunciation notes. The fully illustrated initial spreads provide quick introductions to local customs and help viewers imagine taking part in the festivities in each place; a fuller explanation of each culture's harvest customs appears in the unusually informative section of appended notes, which also includes several pertinent harvest-related questions to discuss with children. Published simultaneously in the U.S. and the UK, the book looks beyond their borders to focus on 12 other states or countries around the world, including Barbados, Bolivia, Ghana, Iran, India, and Spain. Vibrantly colorful and nicely detailed, the illustrations portray people gathering together to celebrate, share the bounty with others, and express their gratitude for the harvest through traditional practices. A useful multicultural addition to classroom units on harvests and Thanksgiving.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
On the initial spread of this whirlwind offering, a look at rituals practiced and food served during harvest holidays globally, a group of children, portrayed with varying skin tones, gather food pending bountiful celebrations. As the pages turn, DePalma uses rigorously rhyming couplets for a tour of varied locations: A spread on Tamil Nadu, India, shows people dressing up their cattle and feeding them treats as thanks for their hard work; another depicts Spanish citizens flooding the streets for La Tomatina, a town-wide tomato food fight, to use up overripe fruit. Pronunciations and sidebars detailing each celebration's significance feature throughout: "At Homowo, the Gã people of Ghana laugh at hunger and remember when they overcame starvation." Peluso's digitally rendered, naïflike illustrations primarily foreground characters rejoicing with their loved ones. Contextualizing back matter provides information about the myriad harvest events discussed. Ages 4--10. (Sept.)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1--3--This picture book includes the harvest celebrations of 11 countries from around the world. Each page contains four rhyming sentences that introduce a festival to readers. The name of the festival is given in the language of the culture, and then a pronunciation is provided. A window in the bottom corner of each spread provides a detail or fact. The simple style of the illustrations gives cultural uniqueness to each group, while still achieving a unified effect: what the people are wearing, eating, making, and doing is showcased in each selection. Back matter contains a calendar of all the festivals featured, information about harvest season presented in a Q&A format, questions for readers, and more detail about each event. Library shelves are full of books on this topic; this one is different because it discusses celebrations in countries that are not typically represented, such as Iran and Liberia, and the illustrations provide accurate details that will engage young readers and facilitate interesting discussion. VERDICT The combination of harvest celebrations that occur in different countries at different times of the year makes this book distinctive and worth purchasing.--Peggy Henderson Murphy
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Review by Horn Book Review
Paper ed. 987-1-64686-627-4 $9.99 A series of eye-pleasing, digitally rendered double-page spreads depicts twelve different holiday traditions around the world (e.g., Martes de Challa in Bolivia; Crop Over in Barbados) related to giving thanks. The text is rhyming couplets, with useful explanatory sidebars and pronunciations that make potentially unfamiliar vocabulary approachable. Thorough back matter further describes the cultures, histories, beliefs, and food. Also appended are a calendar of when these holidays are celebrated, questions to encourage contemplation of how food is sourced, and author and illustrator notes. Roshni PatelNovember/December 2022 p.14(c) Copyright 2022. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Harvest time is celebrated around the world. When the difficult work of an agricultural society is finished, and if conditions have been good, there is plenty of food both to be stored and made into special dishes. Parades, music, and special decorations usually play important roles. In simple, rhyming couplets, DePalma describes 12 holidays in various countries, such as Chuseok, a Korean festival celebrated according to the lunar calendar (in September or October), and Homowo ("hoot at hunger" in Gã), celebrated in Ghana in August. The simple text is enhanced by extensive backmatter that offers more detailed explanations as well as a calendar showing when each holiday is observed. The richly colored digital illustrations offer detailed depictions of traditional clothing and foods. A variety of countries are highlighted, including Liberia, India (Tamil Nadu and Punjab), Poland, and Bolivia, and characters are diverse, but the illustrator's style lends a sameness to many faces. Some people with physical disabilities are pictured. Children from various countries are gathered together at the beginning and end as if they were celebrating together. Given that many schools study festivals from all over the world throughout the year, this attractive, informative book will be useful as a starting point, though it lacks sources and maps. (This book was reviewed digitally.) An enticing look at harvest rituals, foods, and festivities. (author's and illustrator's notes) (Informational picture book. 5-7) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
