Harvest Days (World of Celebrations)

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

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.)