Celebrate Halloween with Pumpkins, Costumes, and Candy is part of National Geographic's Holidays Around the World series of nonfiction picture books. According to the National Geographic Society, the purpose of the series is to introduce "...readers in grades one to four to different religious and cultural holidays celebrated around the globe."
Celebrate Halloween: The Book's Emphasis
As I have mentioned before, the strength of the
Holidays Around the World series is how well it makes the point, through beautiful color photography and simple text, that what children might perceive as a holiday or event celebrated only in their own country, state or community is, instead, a holiday celebrated by children and their families in countries around the world. Each book provides an introduction to the meaning and celebration of a specific holiday.
Celebrate Halloween uses striking color photographs of children celebrating fall and Halloween in several different countries to illustrate the history and celebration of Halloween, which is celebrated in the United States, Canada, the British Isles and other countries. Included are photos and descriptions that illustrate the Celtic origins of Halloween, the role of pumpkins, costumes and decorations. Halloween parades, trick or treating, and Halloween parties.
Celebrate Halloween: Additional Resources
As is standard for books in the
Holidays Around the World series, there is a section of additional resources at the end of the book. In
Celebrate Halloween, this includes quick facts about the holiday, a recipe for Spooky Graveyard Cake, directions for Snap-Apple, a party game popular in the British Isles, a map of the world showing where the photographs in the book were taken, a brief glossary, a list of additional sources of information for readers eager to learn more about Halloween and a page of information about the Day of the Dead, plus an essay about Halloween by scholar Dr. Jack Santino.
Celebrate Halloween: The Author and Other Contributors
Deborah Heiligman is the author of
Celebrate Halloween. Dr. Jack Santino, professor of folklore and popular culture at Bowling Green State University in Ohio, served as the consultant for the book. The two also collaborated on
Celebrate Hanukkah, another of the book in the
Holidays Around the World series. Some of the other books in the series that Deborah Heligman wrote include:
Celebrate Thanksgiving,
Celebrate Christmas,
Celebrate Passover,
Celebrate Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur,
Celebrate Ramadan and Eid Al-Fitr,
Celebrate Independence Day, and
Celebrate Easter. Heiligman is also the author of a number of science books for children. Numerous photographers contributed to the book.
Celebrate Halloween: My Recommendation
Like the other books in the
Holidays Around the World series, I think
Celebrate Halloween will appeal to a broader audience than just children in grades 1-4. Younger children will enjoy the colorful photographs while older children will learn more about Halloween. While
Celebrate Halloween does not provide much depth in terms of the history and origins of Halloween, it does provide an overview of, and introduction to, Halloween and a look at how it is celebrated in other countries.
I recommend the Holidays Around the World series as an excellent way to introduce children to the fact that their country is not the only one in which many holidays are celebrated and to the similarities and differences in how and where holidays are celebrated around the world. Other books in the Holidays Around the World series that I've reviewed include Celebrate Hanukkah, Celebrate Kwanzaa and Celebrate Passover. (National Geographic, 2007. ISBN: 9781426301209)
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