MULTICULTURAL CHILDREN'S BOOK DAY, January 27, 2015

                                 #ReadYourWorld    http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/

Our mission is to not only raise awareness for the kid’s books that celebrate diversity, but to get more of these of books into classrooms and libraries.

Children’s reading and play advocates Valarie Budayr from Jump Into a Book and Mia Wenjen from Pragmatic Mom have teamed up to create an ambitious (and much needed) national event.  On January 27th, Jump into a Book and Pragmatic Mom will be presenting yet another Multicultural Children’s Book Day as a way of celebrating diversity in children’s books.

Multicultural Children’s Book Day will include book reviews from noted bloggers all over the world, giveaways and book-related activities for young readers of all ages. The MCCBD team will also be partnering with First Book to create a Virtual Book Drive for the event, and with The Children’s Book Council to offer readers quality resources along with fun and informative author visits.

Co-Hosts

The following list is a select group of bloggers who will assist in extending the reach and spreading the word of Multicultural Children’s Book Day. These 9 blogs will also house the wildly-popular book review/blog post link-up the week of the event. We would appreciate if you could take a few minutes and visit each of these excellent blogs. These women were selected by the MCCBD team because of their true dedication to supporting diversity in children’s literature.

Africa to America, All Done, MonkeyEducators, Spin on it, Growing Book by Book, InCultural Parent, KidWorld Citizen, Mama Smiles, Multicultural Kid Blogs, Sprout’s Bookshelf

MCCBD 2015 Sponsors include:

Platinum Sponsors:  Wisdom Tales Press,  Daybreak Press  Global Bookshop 
Gold Sponsors:  Satya House, MulticulturalKids.com,  Author Stephen Hodges and the Magic Poof
Silver Sponsors: Junior Library Guild,  Capstone Publishing, Lee and Low Books,  The Omnibus Publishing 

Bronze Sponsors: Double Dutch Dolls, Bliss Group Books, Author Richa Jha, Rainbow Books, Author FeliciaCapers,   Chronicle Books   Muslim Writers Publishing ,East West Discovery Press. 

Available on Amazon.com in both eBook and Hardcover versions

I'm one of the bloggers priviledged to be part of the second MULTICULTURAL CHILDREN'S BOOK DAY and was asked to read and review JAPANESE CLEBRATIONS  Cherry blossoms, Lanterns and Stars!, written and illustrated by Betty Reynolds, and published by Tuttle. All I can say is 'lucky me' because this gorgeous book is a breath of fresh air both in content and art work. An entire year of Japanese traditions and celebrations float across its pages beginning with O-Shogatsu, Japanese New Year, January 1st, and end with Kekkon-shiki, weddings which combine Shinto customs and modern-day culture.

                                                                   WINTER

                                           

                                                         Playing cards and badmition are just some
                                                         of the New Year's Day activities.

Flying kites is a favorite pasttime
in Japan especially on New Year's Day.

Having been a teacher for most of my professional career, I found this beautifully-designed and fact-filled book to provide a plethora of history, religion, rites, myth, song and dance that any educator of children, ages 7-12 would be excited to utilize when doing a concentrated study of Japan.Working together as a family would not only educate parents and children alike, but as an added bonus, develop a stronger familial bond, too. Perhaps it would inspire families to tour Japan to soak up the their culture firsthand. Every celebration comes replete with a sycinct overview of the specific holiday or event. Further included are the practices, symbols, special foods, and games particular to each day, identified first in the Japanese language, and then clarified very simply in English. Finally a colorful, whimsical illustration accompanies every explanation which rounds out our understanding perfectly. After all, a picture is worth a thousand words no matter the language in which facts as well as fiction are being told! I highly recommend JAPANESE CELEBRATIONS Cherry Blossoms, Lanterns, and Star! as a must read in 2015.


                                  SPRING

Cherry Blossom Time, held in April, is truly a sight to behold!
 The landscape is colored pink and brings crowds of folks
from everywhere to enjoy the spectacular scenery.

On the 8th of April Japan celebrates the birthday of Buddha.
The children studying Buddhist classes take turns pouring sweet tea
 over Buddha's head as a form of baptism.

  

                           SUMMER

                                         

                                                          Summer fun includes 

                                                             lighting sparklers

                                                 and wearing sandals to keep cool.

Grilling foods outdoors is done in Japan during
 the summer much like what we do in the U.S.
The only difference is the Japanese
prefer eel instead of hot dogs!

                     


                              FALL

Athlete Meets, held in September through October, include tug of war and ball competitions.

                                   ANYTIME

A traditional Japanese wedding ceremony

                                                                     

                                               Baby's first food is a grain of rice.

 

Birthdays are celebrated in Japan
 in much the same way as in the U.S.

  

HOW TO MAKE A SAMURAI HELMET

from CHERRY BLOSSOMS, LANTERNS,AND STARS! page 29