Kwanzaa

School Library Journal

Gr 3-5--Using clear and direct lan guage, Chocolate provides a wealth of detail as she shares her family's Kwan zaa festival. The seven principles of Kwanzaa are concretely explained, and stories are told about this family's an cestors in a way that should spark chil dren's interest in their own family his tories. Rosales's brightly colored paintings in a realistic style draw read ers into the warmth and joy of this holi day. Combined with the text, they pro vide sufficient information for those who have never celebrated Kwanzaa to plan a rich and meaningful festival. The many Swahili words are in italics and are clearly explained (Harambee is overlooked in this regard). In addition, these words are repeated in a corner of the page on which they appear, along with the correct pronunciation. An in troductory note explains the African roots of the festival, but not its creation in the U. S. in 1966 by Maulana Kar enga. This book will be a valuable addi tion to school and public library collec tions; it appears to be the only available book on the subject at this level. In ad dition to its usefulness to families, it has illustrations that are large and clear enough for group sharing.--Susan Gif fard, Englewood Public Library, NJ