It's a Small World . . . Christmas Around the World by Mary D. Lankford

 

Christmas around the World begins by explaining the beginning of Christmas and the way it celebrated around the world. The different countries described in the book include: Australia, Canada, Ethiopia, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Guatemala, Italy, Mexico, Philippines, and Sweden. Displaying such a variety of countries and cultures revolving around the same Holiday, makes this book a great source for teaching about multicultural and celebrations around the world. The book describes how different countries celebrate Christmas, the illustrations used to show the support the text are beautiful and detailed. I would recommend this book for children in grades 4 and higher because there is a lot of information on each page, and this may lose the attention of younger children. The offers a variety of things to think about. It includes realistic characters, and the characters represent a variety of cultural groups. Reading this book can expose children to multiple perspectives and values. There are no negative stereotypes of the groups represented, and the lifestyles of the characters are genuine and complex.