Wide in scope and personal in presentation, this book is a good choice for learning about Muslims’ traditions as expressed...
This nonfiction volume, part of the Origins series on holidays, introduces Muslims’ month of fasting and gives a taste of how it is celebrated around the world.
Khan opens the volume with a personal anecdote of her first attempt at fasting, when she was 9 years old, and the lessons she has since learned about the fast. She goes on to explain the main tenets of the Islamic faith and how Ramadan fits into the belief system, including information about lunar calendars as compared to solar calendars. With the basic facts established, the author goes into more detail about the stages of the month of Ramadan, specific ways in which Muslims give back to their communities during the month, and samples of Ramadan traditions from countries around the world. The book is generously illustrated with stock photographs of people of many ethnic backgrounds and nationalities observing Ramadan, as well as places that are important to Muslims. Each chapter ends with a one-page story showcasing one child’s experience of Ramadan. Included throughout the book in sidebars are children’s quotes about what the month means to them, traditional stories, facts, and recipes. Words defined in the glossary are italicized in the text. The personal perspectives elevate this volume above an average informational book; readers, both non-Muslims and Muslims, can step into the shoes of someone from another background.
Wide in scope and personal in presentation, this book is a good choice for learning about Muslims’ traditions as expressed in various cultures. (author’s note, series editor’s note, glossary, resources, index) (Nonfiction. 9-14)Pub Date: March 27, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4598-1181-2
Page Count: 88
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: Jan. 21, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2018
Deftly written and informative; a call for vigilance and equality.
An examination of the history of Chinese American experiences.
Blackburn opens with a note to readers about growing up feeling invisible as a multicultural, biracial Chinese American. She notes the tremendous diversity of Chinese American history and writes that this book is a starting point for learning more. The evenly paced narrative starts with the earliest recorded arrival of the Chinese in America in 1834. A teenage girl, whose real name is unknown, arrived in New York Harbor with the Carnes brothers, merchants who imported Chinese goods and put her on display “like an animal in a circus.” The author then examines shifting laws, U.S. and global political and economic climates, and changing societal attitudes. The book introduces the highlighted people—including Yee Ah Tye, Wong Kim Ark, Mabel Ping-Hua Lee, and Vincent Chen—in relation to lawsuits or other transformative events; they also stand as examples for explaining concepts such as racial hierarchy and the model minority myth. Maps, photos, and documents are interspersed throughout. Chapters close with questions that encourage readers to think critically about systems of oppression, actively engage with the material, and draw connections to their own lives. Although the book covers a wide span of history, from the Gold Rush to the rise in anti-Asian hate during the Covid-19 pandemic, it thoroughly explains the various events. Blackburn doesn’t shy away from describing terrible setbacks, but she balances them with examples of solidarity and progress.
Deftly written and informative; a call for vigilance and equality. (resources, bibliography, image credits) (Nonfiction. 10-14)Pub Date: March 26, 2024
ISBN: 9780593567630
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
Like oil itself, this is a book that needs to be handled with special care.
In 1977, the oil carrier Exxon Valdez spilled 11 million gallons of oil into a formerly pristine Alaskan ocean inlet, killing millions of birds, animals, and fish. Despite a cleanup, crude oil is still there.
The Winters foretold the destructive powers of the atomic bomb allusively in The Secret Project (2017), leaving the actuality to the backmatter. They make no such accommodations to young audiences in this disturbing book. From the dark front cover, on which oily blobs conceal a seabird, to the rescuer’s sad face on the back, the mother-son team emphasizes the disaster. A relatively easy-to-read and poetically heightened text introduces the situation. Oil is pumped from the Earth “all day long, all night long, / day after day, year after year” in “what had been unspoiled land, home to Native people // and thousands of caribou.” The scale of extraction is huge: There’s “a giant pipeline” leading to “enormous ships.” Then, crash. Rivers of oil gush out over three full-bleed wordless pages. Subsequent scenes show rocks, seabirds, and sea otters covered with oil. Finally, 30 years later, animals have returned to a cheerful scene. “But if you lift a rock… // oil / seeps / up.” For an adult reader, this is heartbreaking. How much more difficult might this be for an animal-loving child?
Like oil itself, this is a book that needs to be handled with special care. (author’s note, further reading) (Informational picture book. 9-12)Pub Date: March 31, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5344-3077-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Nov. 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2019
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