Birthdays Around the World (Around the World)

by Margriet Ruurs (Author) Ashley Barron (Illustrator)

Birthdays Around the World (Around the World)
Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade
Everyone in the world has a birthday. But birthdays are not celebrated in the same way everywhere. Meet Mercedes in Peru, who eats a cake and a purple pudding called mazamorra morada. Ieva in Latvia is raised in the birthday chair, one lift for each year. And rather than celebrating his own birthday, Phúc Khang in Vietnam joins in the festivities during Tet, when everyone in the country turns one year older. Based on interviews with real people, award-winning author Margriet Ruurs tells the unique stories of how seventeen children from all around the globe celebrate a birthday, including how they each say happy birthday in their native language. Following the memorable stories, children are invited to compare their own birthday traditions with the ones they've learned about in the book.

Birthdays can be a yearly highlight and a shared experience for children, which make them a perfect subject for introducing different customs around the world. As with all the titles in the bestselling Around the World series, this fascinating book provides cross-curricular applications in language arts, global studies and geography. Ashley Barron's beautiful cut-paper collage artwork adds a contemporary, stylized feel to the pages. Enriching the reading experience are a world map that pinpoints all the locations of the children in the book; a two-page spread containing six activities that facilitate a closer reading of the text; and a glossary containing translations, pronunciations and foreign scripts for the foreign words and phrases in the book.
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Kirkus Reviews

An easy, enjoyable way to start thinking about similarities and differences around the world. (glossary) (Informational picture book. 5-8)

Copyright 2017 Kirkus Reviews, LLC Used with permission

School Library Journal

K-Gr 3--This cheerful nonfiction picture book explores birthday celebrations in a variety of countries. Ruurs showcases the cultural traditions of various children, including special clothing worn and the details of the festivities (food, games, special guests, etc.). The paper-cut illustrations are colorful and inviting but simple enough for small group read-alouds. There are tips for reading, helpful background information for parents and teachers, and follow-up activities. The short text passages are slightly challenging because of all the vocabulary words from other languages, but there is a glossary appended. The brevity of the prose will make this one a good choice for introductory conversations about cultural differences. VERDICT A fine addition to the geography and/or culture sections of children's libraries.--Debbie Tanner, S D Spady Montessori Elementary, FL

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

... a cheerful, inviting introduction to birthdays.—Booklist
Margriet Ruurs
Margriet Ruurs is the author of more than thirty books for children, including Families Around the World, School Days Around the World and Birthdays Around the World. A regular guest speaker at international schools, she often writes about the real children she meets on her travels. Margriet lives with her family on Salt Spring Island, British Columbia.
Wenjia Tang is a freelance illustrator with an affinity for children's books and maps. After graduating from the Maryland Institute College of Art, she turned her attention to illustrating children's books. You can find her work in Under Your Feet and Up & Down. Born and raised in southeast China, Wenjia now makes her home in New York City.
Classification
Non-fiction
ISBN-13
9781771386241
Lexile Measure
780
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Kids Can Press
Publication date
September 20, 2017
Series
Around the World
BISAC categories
JNF038000 - Juvenile Nonfiction | People & Places | General
JNF026100 - Juvenile Nonfiction | Holidays & Celebrations | Birthdays
Library of Congress categories
-

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