Celebrating Birth Around the World (Raintree Perspectives: Cultures and Customs) - Hardcover

Anita Ganeri is an award-winning author of information books for children. Educated at Cambridge University, she has written more than 300 books, including the best-selling 'Horrible Geography' series (Scholastic Children's Books) which won a 2009 Blue Peter Book Award. She writes widely on animals and the natural world. A recent title for Raintree, A Day in the Life of Rainforest Animals: Capybara, has been shortlisted for a Maryland Blue Crab Award 2012. Anita lives in the north of England with her husband, children and assorted pets.

Gr 3-6-All humans commemorate life's milestones, and this set takes emerging readers to celebrations around the world. Double-page chapters describe how a wide variety of religious groups, subcultures, and nations mark important events, but books are short on background. Some spreads provide limited information about a culture or nation, including locator maps, but others merely describe ceremonies or rites, such as Hindu and Sikh weddings, with little explanation of their religious or cultural significance. The books don't explain the central tenets of world religions such as Islam or Hinduism, reducing the likelihood that readers will understand the importance of these ceremonies and customs. Sidebars, arts and craft projects, and large, average-quality photos supplement the text. VERDICT These volumes demonstrate the universality of celebrations, but there are many extant titles about specific countries, cultures, and religions that cover them in a fuller context, making the series a supplemental purchase.α(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.