Festivals Books

It is 1849 and Mary Mclean and her family are fresh off the boat from Ireland. Mary is excited to hear about stories and traditions from Ireland that are told by other members of the Irish community where she lives. One of the things she gets told about is the St. Patrick's Day parade. Mary is excited about this and all the stuff that surrounding it. More than anything, she wants to be part of it so she asks Mr. Finnegan, a local shop owner, if she can ride on his cart in the parade with him. Mr. Finnegan agrees but only if Mary McLean can find a perfect shamrock. This is an almost impossible task because it is winter. Mary searches and searches and she can't find one. She finally stumbles across a leprechaun who says he'll give her one later. Months later, he is back the day before St. Patrick's Day. Mary captures him and asks for the promised shamrock. The leprechaun says he lost it and tricks Mary into turning away. Mary goes home dejected. Her father comes home with a surprise! He found a shamrock for her and Mary is able to be in the parade. She's very happy.
This book is priceless. The artwork is fabulous and reminiscent of Norman Rockwell. The artwork is very engaging. Each page is laid out exactly the same. On the left side, there is the text. On the right side, there is a color illustration. The moral of the story seems to be that good things do happen to good people. This is a wonderful theme. It also seems to have a theme of good things happen to those who wait. This is something important to instill in children because so often they want things right now this very instant. The story line is entertaining and easy to follow. It is a wonderful book to read.

This is a story of a little girl who searches for a four leaf clover so she can be in the St. Patrick's Day Parade. The fantasy and excitement of a leprechaun appeals to my students. It lends very nicely to creative writing in the classroom. This is a must, especially for primary teachers.

This is a wonderful book that demystifies and illuminates the role of the exuberant textiles and costumes at Shinto-Buddhist celebrations. Through her extensive ethnographic research, she uncovers not only the symbolism and social significance of Japanese festivals, but also how modern people today actively engage and exult in this tradition. Particularly fascinating is the chapter on imported textiles in Kyoto's Gion festival. Gonick's investigations in Japan and China reveal a story of trade and transmission that unexpectedly links several cultures. Central Asian tribal artisans, Indo-Persian ateliers, as well as Ainu chieftains create or convey the astonishing artworks which adorn Japanese festivals (matsuri). I recommend Matsuri! as the epitome of a crossover book that will interest academics and general readers alike.

This book documents the fascinating history of Matsuri - colorful Japanese village-level festivals. It seeks to convey an understanding of Shinto, the indigenous belief-system of Japan, through color illustrations, field and studio photographs, as well as scholarly descriptions of the lively artworks that accompany Shinto rites. The text parts of the book are interesting and well-researched. The high-quality images add elegance. "Matsuri!" is an academic resource and a lavish coffee table book. I recommend "Matsuri!" it to anyone who enjoys learning about Japanese culture and history.

I wasn't going to buy this book because it wasn't written by someone from my religion. But I am very glad that I did get this book. The writer is Methodist, but it doesn't make any difference, the book is one of my favorites now. It's well written for anybody in any Christian religion. I really like the prayers for each section.

The book consists of a short series of meditations concerning the Person of the Holy Spirit. It describes the great gift from God of the presence of His Holy Spirit in each human being and relates the meditations to passages of Holy Scripture. An excellent and simply written description of the Hol;y Spirit as a powerful force and source of strength for and who choose to recognize His presence.

This is hands down the best book about Memorial Day for younger children. I have a 6 and 5 yo and they got so much out of this book. The wording was so much better than the ones I found at the local library. It discusses the Civil War a lot so you can use it again when that topic is introduced. I homeschool and I found this to be an excellent source of info!

The History of Memorial Day is so often overlooked, untaught, misunderstood. This book does an A+ job of teaching our children the history and the meaning of the day. I wish there were more like this. ... Buy. Read. Pass it on to others. Give as a gift. Let us not forget the true meaning of Memorial Day.

"Merry Christmas, Davy!" is the fifth book in Brigitte Weninger and Eve Tharlets' "Davy" series. These books are all about a young bunny boy who is sweet and kind, but sometimes gets into trouble because his good intentions cause him to make mistakes. Or at least, they seem like mistakes, but especially around Christmas, doing nice things has a way of making others open their hearts as well.

In this story, Father Rabbit reminds the kids of Santa Claus and the way that he likes children to behave. They remember their lessons well --- Santa Claus rewards being good, helping one another, sharing things and kindness. When Davy notices animals in need of food due to a harsh winter, he decides to share his family's food, not realizing that this will deprive his family. At first, the Rabbits are mad, but when they think about what Davy has done, they band together in a wonderful show of generosity.

The illustrations are soft, charming, and touching. The text is good for read-aloud, but may be a bit lengthy for younger readers to read on their own. So this is a story probably best shared by families and the lesson it teaches is great for all families.

As a storyteller, every Christmas was a struggle, which books will I read this year? They were all nice stories, but none was better. Until I read this one. It was an instant hit. ALL the children loved it. Davy is an admirable character, he is like a regular 4 years old, innocent and willing to do some good... not thinking he can do some arm to his own family. A touching story that brings parents and children together.

Great for little girls into dinosaurs. So much dinosaur stuff is geared towards boys only. It's a great book for both.

We have been in love with Princess Dinosaur at our house for over a year now--and now we get to enjoy her in a second book! The illustrations are what make these two books so wonderful. They perfectly capture the energy and personality of the Princess Dinosaur character. The stories are simple and straightforward. It's the character that brings us back again and again. I'd recommend this book for anyone with an energetic 3-6 year-old girl in their life.

I like this book. I love the flaps. I like it beacuse it is about Christmas.

Are you a rugrats fan if ou are this is the book for you!A great book a nice gift for all ages.a book that is the #1 rugrats book made this book has great pics.. a great book for children ages 5+.

My three year old loves this book! It's his favorite bedtime story and he looks forward to sitting on daddy's lap and having this story read to him. The watercolor illustrations evoke the thoughtful story line of a little boy, his favorite toy, and an elderly/magic great-grandmother. Highly recommended!!!

My 5 year old son absolutely loved this book. It reminded me of him, always having to bring his trains everywhere and his new obsession with the Santa Fe Railroad. Such a beautiful story. I only wish I had known about this book around Christmas time. Thank you Mr. Hooks.

This is a fun book with great illustrations. It is fairly seasonal in nature with the Easter Bunny involved. Milo, as a giant bunny, didn't feel accepted, but he learned he was a great bunny with the help of the Easter Bunny.

In Stephen Krensky's Milo The Really Big Bunny Milo just wants to be like the other bunnies, but he's the biggest bunny any bunny has ever seen and he just doesn't fit in. Plus, he's purple. Milo feels badly, until the Easter Bunny announces he needs a helper...and he's determined to be that helper, no matter what! Hilarious adventures are enhanced by zany drawings by Melissa Suber in this winner.

My daughter is 3 1/2 and keeps coming home from school asking me to tell her about Moses. We picked this book from those available at our local bookstore and she seemed to enjoy the story and pictures right from the beginning. I can either tell the story as written or simplify it slightly to make it more age appropriate. I also like that she can grow with it for another year or two, whereas many of the other Passover books were much too simplistic for this age group. The illustrations and flaps are wonderful.

This book offers a straightforward retelling of the Passover story for young children with eager hands. Illustrations are colorful and the "lift-the-flap" element offers delightful visual surprises. A double page spread of the fleeing Jews at night is compelling, and when Moses' staff turns into a snake just to eat the magician's staff, the result is indeed miraculous in composition and humor. However, the story is recalled in a neutral, omniscient voice, which does not give the reader any emotional sense of the dramatic story. After retelling the story of the Exodus from Egypt, Hanft uses the last pages to explain some of the history of Seder and the special foods on the Seder plate. He concludes with the traditional wish, "We wait for the time when Elijah will announce the day of peace for everyone. We end the seder with these words, NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM." For ages 3-6.