PB Pick: It's Diwali!

 It's Diwali! 

by Kabir Sehgal and Suishtha Segal

Illustratyed by Archana Sreenivasan

Beach Lane Books

Simon & Schuster

2022

32 pages

ISBN: 8671534453654

It's Diwali! is a wonderful explosion of color, celebration and culture that begs to be read aloud to the tune of "One, Two, Buckle My Shoe." Kids and adults will learn about the celebration of Diwali, the Indian festival of lights.

From painting on mehndi (henna designs that symbolize luck and happiness to traditional foods like jalebis, a dessert treat, Diwali is a fun event. Every page pops with color and life. Open this picture book and step into India. The art is that vibrant! Kudos to illustrator Archana Sreenivasan. 

It's Diwali! is a must have for any collection of picture books and likely to be heavily awarded. 

Highly recommended ages 3 and up. 

Novel In Verse: A Seed in the Sun

 

A Seed in the Sun

by Aida Salazar

Dial Books for Young Readers

Imprint Penguin Random House LLC
2023

272 pages

ISBN: 9780593406601

The year is 1966. The setting is the grape fields of Delano, California. The protagonist is a young girl named Lula Viramontes who finds her voice when she meets farmworkers' advocates and strikers. 

The workers want better conditions and fair wages. Tempers erupt, gunfires breaks out, Lula and her family must navigate their precarious existence and survive. 

A Seed in the Sun is a novel in verse about an historical event in the farm labor movement. Young readers will be moved by Lula's plight and her strength to speak out. 

Recommended for every collection. It is fiction based on fact and should be included reading in any history course, especially in the state of California.