(4) 4-6 Illustrated by Mark Bender. Twelve festivals--most, but not all, religious--acknowledging the importance of light are described here, from Diwali (India) to Hanukkah (Israel), from Buddha's birthday (Korea) to Las Posadas (Mexico). Clear and economical, the brief descriptions are accompanied by strongly patterned paintings that are more decorative than illustrative.

Reviewer: Amy Lois Cohn

(4) 1-3 Illustrated by Robert Chapman. Rosita learns to deal with her grief over her beloved abuelita's death by making a gift for her grandmother on the Day of the Dead. Three-dimensional illustrations made of cast paper--with added-on objects made of wood, string, fabric, and beads--have eye-catching details; details in the somewhat trite story strengthen the characterization and setting. The Spanish text in this bilingual book is well translated.

Reviewer:

(3) K-3 A child on a camping trip with his parents watches an otter family that lives along the river. Human and otter activities parallel each other as they stretch, fish, eat, wrestle, and dream the day away. The detailed watercolors and their borders express the otters' playfulness and the observant narrator's appreciation of the natural world. An author's note about otters concludes the book.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.