Lunar New Year is on Tuesday, February 1. Our family is reading these three books this year to learn more about the celebration.
12 Lucky Animals by Vickie Lee and illustrations by Joey Chou is a bilingual board book that introduces babies to the 12 animals that represent the months in the Chinese zodiac. Each page spread has an incredible illustration of the animal as well as the name of the animal in English and Chinese characters, an English pronunciation, and a description in English of each animal.
My kids liked looking up which animal represents the year of their birth and seeing if the characteristics apply to them- shocker they think ALL the traits are theirs.
I try not to play favorites, but this one is the family favorite of this stack. The Great Race by Christopher Core is a beautifully illustrated telling of how each animal came to be named for a year of the Chinese zodiac. In the telling, many years ago a Chinese emperor wanted to be able to measure time. He created a race wherein the first 12 animals to reach him would have a year named for them. This book is the story of that race. It’s interesting and funny, and my kids and I both really enjoyed it. The length was prefect for my 5 year old who is often eager to disrupt reading to go play!
The Mindy Kim series is excellent, and this is the second book in the series. Mindy Kim and the Lunar New Year Parade by Lyla Lee and Dung Ho allows readers to follow Mindy as she prepares for Lunar New Year, sharing the special clothes, foods, and traditions she is looking forward to. At the Lunar New Year parade she gets separated from her dad, and has to find her way back to him. We love seeing all the ways Mindy and her family and friends celebrate the New Year. We enjoyed comparing it to American traditions and trying some treats ourselves.
Happy Lunar New Year to all who celebrate!
Should you want to purchase any of these books, please click the link in this post to purchase from my bookshop store! Thanks for your support!