Children's Books discussion

I would appreciate some good titles! Thanks!

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20...

Found this new version at Walmart last week. My silly 7 yo just loves it.

"There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Bat"

No, I don't think we have a thread on this holiday already. Thank you for starting one, Kirei!

Here are some suggestions:

Day of the Dead

I Remember Abuelito / Yo Recuerdo a Abuelito: A Day of the Dead Story / Un Cuento Del Dia De Los Muertos

Felipa and the Day of the Dead

Clatter Bash!: A Day of the Dead Celebration

Un Regalo Para Abuelita/ a Gift for Abuelita: En Celebracion Del Dia De Los Muertos/ Celebrating the Day of the Dead

I have a question. Is the fact that Halloween, All Souls' Night, the day of the Dead etc. all happen in late October, early November a coincidence? Personally, I don't think so, but I'm curious to know what others think.

Gundula wrote: "I have a question. Is the fact that Halloween, All Souls' Night, the day of the Dead etc. all happen in late October, early November a coincidence? Personally, I don't think so, but I'm curious t..."

I don't think it's a coincidence, either. But, I have no real insight into it--haven't studied it or anything. The only thing I can think of off the topof my head is that it has to do with the season...with the winding down of the year, with harvest being over, winter coming, plants becoming dormant or "dying" and all that, that it seems to fit with the season??? (Not that I personally associate winter with death but just thinking here...)

Here is an interesting article--not that you can believe everything you read online, but this is supposedly from a PhD. It talks about another such holiday, the Celtic Samhain.

" ...All Saints Day, otherwise known as All Hallows (hallowed means sanctified or holy), continued the ancient Celtic traditions. The evening prior to the day was the time of the most intense activity, both human and supernatural. People continued to celebrate All Hallows Eve as a time of the wandering dead, but the supernatural beings were now thought to be evil. The folk continued to propitiate those spirits (and their masked impersonators) by setting out gifts of food and drink. Subsequently, All Hallows Eve became Hallow Evening, which became Hallowe'en--an ancient Celtic, pre-Christian New Year's Day in contemporary dress....

...Virtually all present Halloween traditions can be traced to the ancient Celtic day of the dead. Halloween is a holiday of many mysterious customs, but each one has a history, or at least a story behind it. The wearing of costumes, for instance, and roaming from door to door demanding treats can be traced to the Celtic period and the first few centuries of the Christian era, when it was thought that the souls of the dead were out and around, along with fairies, witches, and demons. Offerings of food and drink were left out to placate them. As the centuries wore on, people began dressing like these dreadful creatures, performing antics in exchange for food and drink. This practice is called mumming, from which the practice of trick-or-treating evolved. To this day, witches, ghosts, and skeleton figures of the dead are among the favorite disguises. Halloween also retains some features that harken back to the original harvest holiday of Samhain, such as the customs of bobbing for apples and carving vegetables, as well as the fruits, nuts, and spices cider associated with the day...."

http://www.mythinglinks.org/Samhain.html

Yes, totally agree! As far as I know, these days Day of the Dead is not connected with Halloween but is with All Saint's Day and All Souls Day--it is definitely rooted in native traditions and beliefs, but is now tied to Catholicism, too. It isn't the same as Halloween.

"Scholars trace the origins of the modern holiday to indigenous observances dating back thousands of years and to an Aztec festival dedicated to a goddess called Mictecacihuatl. In Brazil, Dia de Finados is a public holiday that many Brazilians celebrate by visiting cemeteries and churches. In Spain, there are festivals and parades, and, at the end of the day, people gather at cemeteries and pray for their dead loved ones. Similar observances occur elsewhere in Europe and in the Philippines, and similarly themed celebrations appear in many Asian and African cultures." (from Wiki. which is as much as I can research right now time-wise, alas!)

So, my idea of the seasons goes out the window here because, naturally, seasons happen differently all over the world, haha!

Now, I will have to look for some of those picture books so I can learn more about it! ;-)

Abigail wrote: "Kathryn: I hadn't seen your excellent post, when I commented above! I think the thing to bear in mind is that both Halloween and Día de los Muertos come out of earlier traditions. So, in that sense..."

That does make sense, thanks for the information, I love exploring relationships, and in some way, I think that many of our cultural traditions are inter-related, the idea of branches from the same tree is a wonderful way of explaining it .

Gundula wrote: "That does make sense, thanks for the information, I love exploring relationships, and in some way, I think that many of our cultural traditions are inter-related, the idea of branches from the same tree is a wonderful way of explaining it . "

I love that, too!

Here's one you might be interested in, Gundula. (
All Saints, All Souls, and Halloween

Not many reviews but it got one five star on Amazon in comparison with the two-star here.

Thank you!!!!!!!!! It is too late this year to buy the books :-( But I'd like to share it with ds. But I was wondering because yesterday I was talking to fifth and sixth graders about Halloween, and they asked me about customs in other countries. Also, they asked me about the history of Halloween. Two very difficult questions.

Wow, that does sound good!

Thank you everyone!

I am a little surprised there are not more "Dia de los Muertos" books out there, given the high Hispanic population of the U.S.

To respond to the history question: I don't know much about the Day of the Dead, but I think it is the same as the Catholic celebration of All Saint's Day, which falls on Nov. 1. (And of course, similar to Japanese Obon. However, I don't think there are books about Obon and so forth. Obon seems to be a very solemn event.)

Kirei wrote: "However, I don't think there are books about Obon and so forth. Obon seems to be a very solemn event.) "

That is good to know. Thanks, Kirei!

I'll have to check the bookstores next summer to make sure! It comes in July or August, depending on which part of Japan you live in. I may be wrong about whether there are books out at that time concerning Obon.

I have not read the following title, but it looks interesting,

Calavera Abecedario: A Day of the Dead Alphabet Book.

The only Día de los Muertos book I got to this year is A Gift for Abuelita: Celebrating the Day of the Dead / Un regalo para Abuelita: En celebracion del Día de los Muertos but I loved it! The illustrations are wonderful, mostly paper collages, full of fascinating detail and warmth. The story itself is tender, thoughtful and, ultimately, comforting--though it does pull at the heartstrings! I was sniffling a bit by the end, but the issue of losing grandparents is still pretty raw with me. In any case, I would highly recommend this for anyone wanting to know more about Día de los Muertos or just seeking a good story about family and the enduring ties of love.

Abigail wrote: "As Día de los Muertos approaches again, I've been searching for more titles, not previously mentioned in this thread.

George Ancona's Pablo Remembers is a great nonfiction classic on Dia de los Muertos.