We love reading about holidays. Whether it is holidays that we celebrate in our family, or holidays that other people celebrate, we love a good holiday book. So this list of new holiday books for kids is full of stories about family celebrations and traditions for everyone to enjoy!
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Home for the Holidays: A Little Book about the Different Holidays That Bring Us Together
Written by Craig Manning and illustrated by Ernie Kwiat
This adorable book uses a rhyming text and colorful illustrations of beloved Sesame Street characters celebrating with their loved ones. The text shares lots of the joys of celebrating different holidays and how it can bring loved ones together. The illustrations feature characters celebrating a variety of holidays from Christmas and Hanukkah to Eid al-Fitr and Diwali. In the back of the book, there is more information about the holidays featured in the book.
Celebrate the World: Kwanzaa
Written by Hannah Eliot and illustrated by Andrea Pippins
This board book introduces readers to the traditions of the Kwanzaa holiday. The simple text explores the symbols and traditions of the holidays, as well as the reasons behind them. The text also introduces the vocabulary words around the holiday, and the meaning of each day. Kids will love the colorful illustrations of kids and families celebrating the holiday together.
Twelve Dinging Doorbells: An Every Holiday Carol
Written by Tameka Fryer Brown and illustrated by Ebony Glenn
This picture book puts a spin on the classic Christmas carol “The 12 Days of Christmas”, following a family as they gather for a holiday celebration together. Each additional lyric adds a new delicious food or fun family member to the mix, creating a raucous family party, ending with a sweet quiet family moment.
![Beam of Light: The Story of the First White House Menorah [Book]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81knasDfWcL.jpg)
Beam of Light: The Story of the First White House Menorah
Written by Elisa Boxer and illustrated by Sofia Moore
This true story follows the remarkable journey of a beam from the Truman-era White House from a piece of wood salvaged during construction to the White House’s first permanent Jewish artifact. Master woodworkers turned the beam into a menorah used during the Biden administration, The back of the book includes an author’s note with more information about the menorah introduced in the story.
Garland of Lights: A Diwali Story
Written by Chitra Soundar and illustrated by Amberin Huq
This counting book counts up from 1 to 13 while celebrating the traditions of Diwali, the Hindu autumnal festival. Each page adds another lamp, while also introducing traditions such as mithai, rangoli art, and fireworks displays. The back of the book includes more information about the festival and a glossary of terms used in the book.
On Friday Afternoon: A Shabbat Celebration
Written by Michal Babay and illustrated by Menahem Halberstadt
In this story, a young girl named Leelee and her dog Pickles are getting ready for Shabbat with her family. As chicken soup bubbles and challah rolls and apple tarts bake, Leelee and Pickles attempt to clean the house and collect donations as their mitzvahs. Things don’t go to plan, but in the end, family and loved ones gather together for Shabbat. The back of the book includes information about mitzvahs and Shabbat.
Looking for Eid Moon
Written by Sahtinay Abaza and illustrated by Sandra Eide
This book follows two young girls who are looking forward to celebrating Eid, the Muslim holiday celebrating the end of Ramadan. As they wait outside to see the crescent moon, they have fun together. When someone else sees the moon, Sara’s little sister is sad, so Sara comes up with a plan to surprise her. The back of the book includes an author’s note about the holiday.
Hanukkah Upside Down
Written by Elissa Brent Weissman and illustrated by Omer Hoffmann
This story follows cousins Nora and Noah as they each celebrate Hanukkah on opposite sides of the world. Noah lives in New York and celebrates Hanukkah during the winter, while Nora lives in New Zealand and celebrates Hanukkah in the summer. As they compete to see who can have the best Hanukkah, they learn that they have more in common than they thought, and that family is the most important part of Hanukkah celebrations.
Awe-Some Days: Poems about Jewish Holidays
Written by Marilyn Singer and illustrated by Dana Wulfekotte
This book of poems introduces readers to different Jewish holidays throughout the year. Each holiday is introduced through a short poem, as well as an informative paragraph and colorful illustration. The back of the book includes a note about the Jewish calendar and more resources for readers.
Here is the World: A Year of Jewish Holidays
Written by Leslea Newman and illustrated by Susan Gal
This beautiful book introduces Jewish holidays through a simple rhyming text and colorful, detailed illustrations. Each two page spread is labeled with the holiday name and includes two simple lines following the pattern “here is…” and introducing parts of the featured holiday. The illustrations show a family participating in all the holiday traditions. In the back of the book, there is more information about the featured holidays, as well as recipes that can be made at home.
Next Year in the White House: Barack Obama’s First Presidential Seder
Written by Richard Michelson and illustrated by E. B. Lewis
This book shares the true story of how an impromptu Seder dinner on the campaign trail brought people together and inspired Barack Obama to host the first ever presidential Seder in the White House. The text shares how a trio of staffers on the campaign trail pulled off a Seder dinner in a hotel basement and also touches on important stories from Jewish history. The back of the book includes more information about the first White House Seder, Black History and Passover, and a recipe for Flourless Golden Apricot Cake.
On All Other Nights
Written by Chris Baron, Joshua S. Levy and Naomi Milliner
This chapter book includes 14 short stories about Passover, written by fourteen bestselling and award winning authors. Each story re-imagines a different step of the Seder, starting out with an explanation of the step and what it represents. The different short stories range in genre from fiction to nonfiction, and the back of the book includes recipes you can make at home.
What are your favorite new holiday books for kids? Share them in the comments below!
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