MOONBEAMS, DUMPLINGS & DRAGON BOATS

The authors—Simonds, who has studied and written about Chinese culture and cooking for 30 years, and Swartz, the vice-president of The Children’s Museum, Boston—have collaborated to present a rich and eclectic collection of Chinese traditions. They’ve filled four chapters with stories, recipes, and activities: “Chinese New Year and the Lantern Festival”; “Qing Ming and the Cold Foods Festival”; “The Dragon Boat Festival”; and “Mid-Autumn Moon Festival.” Whether readers are preparing New Year Dumplings or Crisp-Cooked Vegetarian Noodles or learning about the Chinese Zodiac and Racing Dragons (boats), making shadow puppets or paper lanterns, they will gain an appreciation for the beautiful traditions in this culture’s history. Gorgeous watercolors complement and brighten each sampling as well as attract readers with their simple beauty and elegance. An index would have allowed users to return easily to a favorite recipe, activity, or story, but the work is well organized and worth some page-turning to find a specific selection. A guide to Chinese pronunciation and two pages of additional resources are included. No library should be without this well-designed, beautiful, and informative resource. (Nonfiction. 5 )