RAMADAN MOON

Bright collage highlights this reflection on the meaning and practice of Ramadan. Narrating in the first person, a girl explains that Ramadan’s timing depends on the moon. She describes the month-long holiday’s religious rituals—praying at home and at mosques, fasting—and the good deeds that go alongside, such as collecting for charity. Connection between outer practice and inner feeling is profound but child-accessible: “In daylight, we feel hungry, / But at sunset, when we eat, / It makes us a little thoughtful, / A little humble, / And very grateful.” The vivid fabrics (calico, denim, solids with visible woven threads) and papers (crinkled, corrugated, metallic) collaged as walls, roofs, skies and clothing convey a pleasurable, nearly palpable sense of texture. The narrator and her family are generic, sporting ubiquitous tiny smiles, but the collage materials engage plenty of visual interest, and this family’s lack of specific personality places the focus on Ramadan and all the celebrating “Muslims of every nation, / Of every age and hue.” Suitable for readers familiar and unfamiliar with Ramadan. (Picture book/religion. 4-7)