Review by Booklist Review
\viewkind4\uc1d\hyphpar0\fi144\sl198\slmult0\qj\lang1033\f0\fs24 By the writer-illustrator of Tokyo Friends0 (1998) and Squeamish about Sushi0 (2000), this profusely illustrated book presents celebrations enjoyed by Japanese children. Reynolds, who lived in Japan for seven years, begins with O Shogatsu 0 (Japanese New Year). A double-page spread explain how the holiday is observed and shows a child's preparations before entering a temple. The next introduces symbols and special foods connected with the holiday, and the third looks at traditional holiday pastimes. The presentation continues through the seasons, highlighting each special day or festival with a single captioned painting or several illustrated pages. In each case, words appropriate to the occasion appear in Japanese characters as well as transliterations. A guide to pronouncing the terms used in the text is appended. Occasionally, a craft, activity, or song appears in this colorful, child-friendly book. --Carolyn Phelan Copyright 2006 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-3-After a brief general introduction, events are listed chronologically, with a single descriptive paragraph or a sentence or two of explanation. The first celebration of the year is O Shogatsu (New Year). Colorful illustrations show people participating in worship at temples and shrines, with a spread describing symbols of good luck and special foods. Other traditional pastimes are shown as well, such as card games and kite flying. An example of the zodiac calendar, which follows a 12-year cycle, is included. Other well-known festivals include Hina Matsuri (Doll Festival, or Girls' Day), Kodomo-no-hi (Children's Day), and O-Bon (Festival of Souls). There are several brief examples of regional festivals as well. A small section on "Other Happy Events" includes traditions for babies and a page on weddings. Japanese words and terms are listed phonetically and in Japanese characters (hiragana). Food, dress, activities, simple Japanese words and phrases, and origami folding are briefly touched on. Simplistic illustrations add festive touches, but the ethnicity of the people depicted isn't all distinctly Japanese. While this book has breadth, it suffers in depth. Most of the festivals are included in greater detail in Rena Krasno's Floating Lanterns & Golden Shrines: Celebrating Japanese Festivals (Pacific View, 2000), for a slightly older audience.-DeAnn Okamura, San Mateo County Library, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
This enthusiastic compendium of the numerous Japanese holidays and festivals includes lots of general information, Japanese words and phrases, and colorful illustrations. Small labeled pictures fill many of the pages and add appeal, though the descriptions accompanying the illustrations are printed in too-tiny type. Some crafts, a song, and a pronunciation guide are included. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
