Festivals Books

This book is a fascinating study of the calendars of ancient Mesopotamia, from the third millennium B.C. to the first millennium B.C. Each section begins with a synopsis of what is known about the calendar from that place and time (e.g. Nippur's calendar versus Ur's), and then launches into a month-by-month list of the festivals associated with that month (complete with the known name of the month). The final chapter focuses of festival themes, and is of general interest.

This is a fascinating book, containing a wealth of information that I didn't realize was available. Sadly, the book is written in a somewhat dry and academic tone, which means that it is not good bedtime reading. That said, though, this book offers a fascinating look into the Mesopotamian's view of the year, and what it offered to them. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the daily life in ancient Mesopotamia.

I greatly enjoyed reading Prof. Cohen's book. It is certainly technical and of special interest to students of the ancient near east, but it is also quite lucid and accessible. The author has mastered and explained an immense amount of information about ancient religion and sacred times. This is an interesting way to learn about religious practices in ancient Mesopotamia and Palestine.

In the 1800s, a girl named Virginia wrote a letter to the "New York Sun" asking a very important question --- is there really a Santa Claus? This book is the story of that letter and the text of the complete letter and response.

Cyndy Szekeres lends her amazing talent for illustrations to the story of this letter. Virginia is a cute little kitten in a world of anthropomorphized kittens. Each page contains a portion of the letter or response, along with illustrations that tell a story all their own --- the story of Virginia's Christmas. Thus, this book works on two levels.

I have read this book as a child and as an adult read it to my children. This is truly a piece to read at Christmas time every year.

This is a great book. The illustration and typesetting are gorgeous. There's just enough repetition to engage young minds, but not enough to bore an adult! And the message of expressing gratitude for our blessings is great. Highly recommend this one...

Siegelson's warm, lyrical, and effectively repetitious story about an African American autumnal celebration smoothly transitions from excited anticipation to consternation to elation. The ending is gratifying in a manner that celebrates the sharing of familial and communal relationships that span generations. Backed by Cohen's bright and moving visuals, this tale is great to read to small audiences. Another winner from a seasoned southern author.

A Day at Sherri's Luz-N-Hugs Daycare book is WONDERFUL! My daughter received this book when she was 9 years old; she is now 11 years old and still loves reading it every night! She also has the Fire Drill Practice at Luv-N-Hugs Daycare that she has brought to her daycare at school and all the kids wanted a book of their own. Kids really like the creative pictures and the fun activities. It is great for the older kids as well as the younger ones. I highly recommend this book as well as the Fire Drill one.

This is a fabulous book for preschoolers and younger. It is a typical day in a daycare with a loving daycare provider named Sherri. She is a teacher, mother, housekeeper, artist, cook, caretaker and much more. If a child is new to daycare this is a good way to break them in before they start. It is a very nice sized book with colorful artistic pages. There are good lessons in the story also. If they are in daycare it is a good present to give to your provider to read to the children. They never get tired of listening to it. My kids are 7,3, and 1 and all still love it. Wonderful gift for anyone with children ( and that includes grandparents also). Thanks for taking my review. You wont be sorry for buying it.

I own the entire set of Days of the Lord which covers the Sunday readings of Years A,B,and C, Advent, Lent and Easter, and I finally got this volume which is a commentary on the Solemnities and Feasts of the liturgical year. In all of the volumes is a wealth of insight regarding the readings for any particular Sunday or holy day. It is not casual reading but simple enough for the laity to understand. I agree that this is a great resource for ministers and would creat sparks to start a homily with. But I also believe that for anyone who seriously wants to prepare and understand the Liturgy of the Word, this is an excellent tool. It puts you in the right disposition for Mass. As a Lector, it also helps me put more expression in my reading because I understand what it is all about. I highly recommend this and all the other volumes of this set.

Since the revision of the Roman Lectionary, scriptural based preaching has become the ideal and the norm. Unfortunately, many preachers find it difficult to make connections with all the readings for a given Sunday or Feast Day. The Days of the Lord series is not an exegetical commentary, but rather a guide for insights into what the Church desires to be preached from its selection of readings. The text is clear and easy to read. It provides some exegesis to ground the readings in the thought of the biblical world. But it also includes enough poetry and symbolic language to allow a good homilist to use these readings to speak to the people of today. These books are a great help in constructing a lectionary-based homily or sermon, thereby achieving the goals set forth by the bishops in their pastoral instruction on preaching.

It's too bad the demons who struck New York on September 11 didn't come from Chelm. Though fools, they'd have learned (from Francine Prose) the utter dementia induced by trying to tackle the New World with the Old.

They'd have been locked up in crates for 50 years, trying to get out. They'd have found that rubbing against party guests in embarrassing places, turning wine into vinegar, curdling the milk and tangling hair doesn't frighten people in a city that knows no darkness, even when the moon doesn't shine.

They'd have known that while gossip was to the Old World "like opening the door and letting the demons in," New World people gossiped all the time. They'd have learned that New Yorkers frightened the demons more than the demons frightened them.

Of course, Francine Prose did not write this story as an allegory about September 11, 2001. The book came out a year earlier. And Sept. 11 was obviously no joke.

Yet post Sept. 11, the New World voice Prose gave to Chelm's mythic Old World laughter and lessons seems addressed to the foolish medieval demons who struck at America's heart without cause: Only those smart enough to adapt survive and thrive. That's why we will win.

It's a good lesson, if only those demons would pay attention. And your kids will understand it, even if the demons don't. Alyssa A. Lappen

This story from Chelm features pictures by Mark Podwal and a tale which requires good reading skills as it tells of the demons of the Polish town of Chelm, where only fools live. The demons decide to move to New York City, but find the big city is more than a match for their spirits in The Demons' Mistake, a fine story of adjustments.

If you teach music, drumming, or multi-cultural lessons at an elementary level, you will adore this book. I borrowed it from the library because it was a story from Japan and found that I could use it as a music lesson. And the story is a good one with lots of teaching moments. Then of course I had to buy it because I'll use it every year. Loved it!

This book BEGS to be read aloud. If you love to make loud, interesting noises while you read to your child, you will love this book - if not, you won't like it. It's the story of an ancient village that was to be attacked by an army of samurai warriors, and how they worked together to ward off the threat. The loud noises come about because the villagers have quite a love of drums - drums of many kinds, and the noises of each drum are woven throughout the book. "Don kada-ka, Don kada-ka, don-da, Don-Da, Don-Da, DON!" Very exciting! The book is also illustrated with cut paper designs - the incredible detail is inspiring to those of us who use die-cuts in our scrapbooks.

In "Duckling's First Spring," Little Duckling has just hatched. (He's the firstborn -- there are two other eggs in his nest.) Now that he's hatched, there are so many friends to meet. And meet them, he does. He meets a Bluebird, Mr. Fish, and many other animal friends. Together, they have a great time, frolicking and singing.

The text is simple enough to appeal to the youngest readers while still being interesting and engaging. The illustrations are vivid and cheerful. Even the book itself is shaped like a flower, for added fun.


This review is the fourth in the series "Agent0042 Goes Ducky," in which I review books featuring cute duck or duckling characters. The third was "Baby Duck and the Bad Eyeglasses."

We love this book! The bold contrasting colors are the biggest selling point. They hold my 2 month old's attention longer than any other book I've found. I am online now to purchase more books by Yoon.

I first took this book out of the library to share the Easter story with my daughters, ages 3 and 4. They just loved the illustrations. These made the story so alive to them they wanted to kiss away the hurt they thought Jesus was feeling. It was great to see the stained glass-like art work while reading the elegant words from the King James Bible. This book is a must for any parent trying to figure out how to present this story to young kids in a beautiful yet realistic way.

The stain-glass like illustrations and the King James text make this picture book appropriately sacred. Although the story is told briefly, many key details are nonetheless included. For example, the text mentions the last supper, doubting Thomas, and several of Christ Jesus' appearances after the resurrection, including the morning meal at the sea of Tiberias. This book is an excellent choice for parents and grandparents who want to be sure their children are biblically literate.

This is a really sweet Strawberry Shortcake book. My girls really enjoyed it.

"The Easter Bonnet Parade" is a "Strawberry Shortcake" Level 1 Station Stop book, designed to help younger readers learn to read. It's a pleasing Strawberry Shortcake story that can be enjoyed by any fan of the show.

Strawberry and her friends are celebrating Easter. They decide to put on an Easter parade --- an Easter bonnet parade to be exact. They all have hats they can decorate to make into fun bonnets, well, all except one. It turns out that Honey Pie Pony doesn't have a hat, so she's worried she won't be able to join in. But Strawberry and her friends work together to help Honey Pie.