P. Bear is having a New Year's Party and all his
best-dressed friends are invited. Each time the clock
strikes the hour, a corresponding group number of exotic
animals shows up. By midnight, P. Bear has a full house
and your child will have a grasp of the clock face.
A Happy New Years Day
by Roch Carrier
Gr 2-4--
Readers are taken back in
time to 1940, when the narrator was four years old. The
world was in the midst of a war, yet in this small
Canadian village of Sainte-Justine, families were able
to carry on with holiday celebrations. And what joyful
celebrations they were, with large groups gathered for
the New Year's feast. This is a joyous recollection of
just such a day. One can almost feel the warmth and
spontaneous gaiety that unfolds when the family gathers
together. The text is simple and clear, describing many
fascinating details of daily life. Yet the story
transcends time as this family could just as well be a
contemporary one. The writing is cohesive and does not
linger in sentimentality or nostalgia. Playful
illustrations are well suited to the text. Full-page
paintings are done in a primitive style using bright,
bold colors. They sparkle with energy and fun. Intricate
details hold viewers' interest and will guarantee
repeated readings.
This Next New Year
by Janet
S. Wong and Yangsook Choi
PreSchool-Grade 2
-A Chinese-Korean boy relates how he
and his friends celebrate the "lunar new year, the day
of the first new moon." One child celebrates the holiday
with "Thai food to go," while a non-Asian child likes to
get "-red envelopes stuffed with money from her neighbor
who came from Singapore." The narrator's mother cooks a
special Korean soup, and his family observes the
traditions of house cleaning, lighting firecrackers, and
being extra good to ensure a lucky new year. Wong
carefully and clearly presents the reasons behind the
rituals in a manner understandable to young children.
She explains in an appended note about her own confusion
as a child about the timing and meaning of the holiday.
Choi's vibrant, somewhat primitive paintings
realistically capture the details of and preparations
for this hopeful time of year. Youngsters will enjoy the
bright colors and the sense of motion and activity
conveyed as the boy helps his mother clean, flosses his
teeth, and cringes from the noise of the firecrackers. A
good choice for anyone getting ready to celebrate
Chinese New Year.
Happy New Year
Everywhere
by Arlene Erlbach
Grade 2-5
-Through interesting text and
colorful, dynamic illustrations, this excellent offering
briefly describes traditional New Year's celebrations
and customs in 20 countries. The introduction explains
that varying cultures observe different calendars and
seasonal celebrations. Each spread highlights a
different country, providing the dates of the
observance; the name of the holiday; the traditional
greeting (with a helpful pronunciation key); and a
related game, recipe, song, or craft. Simple, colorful
line drawings illustrate the projects and a world map
pinpoints the location of each celebration. Festive side
borders with stars and fireworks adorn each page. This
title's particular strengths are the activities and the
lengthy bibliography. A book that will greatly enhance
research projects or study units.
Just In Time For New Year's!: A
Harry & Emily Adventure (Holiday
House Reader)
by Karen
Gray Ruelle
Kindergarten-Grade 2
–Two kittens want to stay awake to
welcome in the new year, and their parents finally agree
that they are old enough to do so. The real problem is,
how to keep from falling asleep when their eyes are
closing and the clock moves slowly. On the big night,
they finally come up with a great idea. They set all of
the alarm clocks to ring just in time for midnight. This
enjoyable book deals with a subject with which many
youngsters can identify. The story shows Harry and Emily
playing games, reading books, and bantering about who is
snoring at night. The colorful illustrations depict a
comfortable house, and observant readers will notice
many humorous touches (such as a cat's version of
Matisse's The Dance). This is a fun story that
beginning readers will enjoy at holiday time or any time
it's important to stay up late.
Happy New Year
by Emery Bernhard
Gr. 3-5, younger for reading aloud.
In this attractive, informative
volume, Bernhard explains the history and superstitions
surrounding the New Year holiday and describes how
ancient and modern day cultures celebrate. He begins by
associating the history of New Year celebrations with
the coming of spring, then briefly discusses the basis
of various cultures' calendars. From there, he skips
around, jumping from New York City's Times Square to
ancient Rome to the Wild West. The lack of a logical
time progression may confuse some children, who won't
grasp whether what is being discussed is current
practice or part of history. However, the colorful
illustrations provide a few time clues and also give
youngsters a sense of each culture's landscape and
dress. Libraries promoting multiculturalism will want to
add this to their collections.
Miffy's Happy New Year!
by Dick
Bruna
It's the last day of school before
winter break. Miffy is especially excited because her
best friend Melanie will be staying at her house. The
girls plan all kind of fun things including a party to
celebrate the new year. They make beautiful invitations
attached to colorful balloons, but the balloons fly away
in a gust of wind! How will their friends find out about
the party?
New Year's Day
by David F. Marx
The popular Rookie Books expand their
horizons - to all corners of the globe! With this series
all about geography, emergent readers will take off on
adventures to cities, nations, waterways, and habitats
around the world…and right in their own backyards.
New Year's Day (True Books)
by Dana
Meachen Rau
Discusses the history, customs, and
celebrations of New Year's Day.
Happy New Year, Corduroy
by Don
Freeman and Lisa McCue
3 . . . 2 . . . 1 . . . Celebrate with
Corduroy! Corduroy and his friends are
ringing in the New Year with a party. They
drink hot cocoa, play games, and count down
to midnight together.
This brightly colored shaped board book
is perfect for the youngest fans of
Corduroy, one of the most adored characters
in children’s books for forty years.
Shanté Keys and the New Year's
Peas
by Gail Piernas-Davenport and
Marion Eldridge
(Ages 5-9)
Shanté Keys loves
New Year's Day! But while Grandma
fixed chitlins, baked ham, greens,
and cornbread, she forgot the
black-eyed peas! Oh no-it'll be bad
luck without them! So Shanté sets
out to borrow some from the
neighbors. Does Miss Lee have peas?
What about Mr. MacGhee, or Shanté's
good friend Hari? None of them
do-but, as Shanté discovers, they
have fun foods and traditions for
their New Year's! Now, if only
Shanté can find good-luck peas in
time for dinner!
In this
multicultural New Year's story,
Shanté Keys learns about Chinese New
Year and Diwali, as well as how
January 1st is celebrated in other
countries. The author includes
additional pages of information
about diverse New Year's traditions
and special foods.
Cecil's New Year's Eve Tail
by Marie
Fritz Perry
When Cecil the
snake is invited to a New Year's Eve
ball in New York City, his
insecurities almost prevent him from
enjoying the evening with his
friends. Along the way, he learns an
important lesson about acceptance
and friendship.
Amelia's Must-Keep Resolutions
for the Best Year Ever!
by Marissa
Moss
"I really want to
celebrate the New
Year, so here's a
whole notebook full
of New Year ideas. I
don't mean for
parties, but for
ways to make
resolutions that
will really stick!"
-- Me, Amelia
A Happy New Year's Day
by Roch
Carrier and Gilles Pelletier
Gr 2-4--
Readers are taken back
in time to 1940, when the narrator
was four years old. The world was in
the midst of a war, yet in this
small Canadian village of
Sainte-Justine, families were able
to carry on with holiday
celebrations. And what joyful
celebrations they were, with large
groups gathered for the New Year's
feast. This is a joyous recollection
of just such a day. One can almost
feel the warmth and spontaneous
gaiety that unfolds when the family
gathers together. The text is simple
and clear, describing many
fascinating details of daily life.
Yet the story transcends time as
this family could just as well be a
contemporary one. The writing is
cohesive and does not linger in
sentimentality or nostalgia. Playful
illustrations are well suited to the
text. Full-page paintings are done
in a primitive style using bright,
bold colors. They sparkle with
energy and fun. Intricate details
hold viewers' interest and will
guarantee repeated readings.
New Clothes for New Year's Day
by
Hyun-joo Bae
Thoreau may have distrusted
enterprises requiring new clothes,
but many young children find them
thrilling, and they'll connect with
the Korean little girl in this
imported picture book who dresses up
to welcome the new year. Simple
words and inventively composed
pictures depict each step in donning
the elaborate, traditional costume,
from the wrapped and tied
"rainbow-striped jacket" to the silk
pouch that brings good luck. Bae's
delicate illustrations move smoothly
between depictions of mishaps as the
child wrestles with troublesome
accessories and grand, wordless
portraits, often incorporating
traditional furnishings and
ornamentation that demonstrate pride
in cultural heritage. Despite an
awkwardly translated endnote that
lacks pronunciations for Korean
vocabulary, this makes an inviting
addition to lunar New Year
offerings, which frequently focus on
Chinese celebrations.
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