The big book of festivals by Joan-Maree Hargreaves & Marita Bullock. Illus. by Liz Rowland

The Big Book of Festivals discusses festivals from all over the world in both a colourful and informative way. The information is not onerous and the double page spread for each festival is cleverly set out. The lead-in page begins with the title, facts about the festival and where and when it takes place. The second page has further interesting information written in different fonts and colours. There is a detailed Contents page and Introduction plus a page showing children's images.They appear throughout the book and this encourages the reader to search for them.

Many of the festivals may not be familiar and their discussion opens up a whole new world of discovery. For example the reader will learn about the birthday of Guru Nanak who was one of the founding fathers of Sikhism, the Festival of Giants which takes place in France and Belgium, the Gelede celebrated in some African countries which pays tribute to the power of mothers and from Australia the Bunya Dreaming festival held on Queensland's Sunshine Coast when the bunyas are in full fruit and ripe for sharing. Other more well-known and traditional festivals are discussed such as Christmas, Easter, Halloween, Lunar New Year, Diwali and Eid Ul-Fitr. There is also information about seasonal festivals as well as remarkable regional festivals.

The authors have certainly covered a variety of festivals from around the world and presented the information clearly and the naive, yet vibrant and colourful illustrations add to the appeal. The endpapers show a map of the world with strategically placed images on each continent. The Big Book of Festivals is a worthy addition to any school or public library.

Themes: Countries, Festivals, Celebrations, Multi-culturalism.

Kathryn Beilby