Book Review: Moonbeams, Dumplings and Dragon Boats

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Simonds, Nina and Leslie Swartz. 2002. MOONBEAMS, DUMPLINGS AND DRAGON BOATS. Ill. Meilo So. New York, NY: Harcourt. ISBN 0152019839

2. PLOT SUMMARY
In this collection of folktales, recipes and crafts, the authors introduce readers to five Chinese holidays and festivals. First, the tradition of each holiday is explained, followed by a folktale that give readers insight into a bit of the reasoning behind some of the traditions. After that, recipes and craft ideas that correlate with the holiday and the folk tale are given, each ranked by difficulty level and time of preparation. The festivals discussed here are the Chinese New Year, Lantern Festival, Qing Ming and the Cold Foods Festival, the Dragon Boat Festival, and the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Simonds and Swartz have really done their homework here and they are very careful to explain that all Chinese traditions, be they recipes, stories, or ways of celebrating vary widely. They stress that the information presented paints a good picture of Chinese culture, but does not claim to be an expert on all of the many nuances present in different regions. The book is set up in such a way as to make it easy for adults to really help children fully experience the festivals. The way that the stories are matched up with supporting recipes and activities makes this book a no brainer educational tool.

Meilo So's illustrations are absolutely breathtaking. Her pen and watercolor paintings fill the book with intense color. She not only does a beautiful job illustrating the folktales, she also depicts the ingredients of the recipes as well as detailed steps in the craft projects. She even succeeds in making a picture of a lowly cardboard box look like art.

4. REVIEW EXCERPTS
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY: "elegantly designed volume"
LIBRARY SCHOOL JOURNAL: "Moonbeams is a useful, visually appealing addition to any holiday collection"

5. CONNECTIONS
* Have children use a lunar calendar to figure out what days the festivals in the book will fall on during the following year of the traditional Western calendar.
* Prepare a few recipes from the book and decorate the classroom with a few of the craft ideas for a party.