Welcoming Light: Celebrating Winter Holiday Traditions

In the northern hemisphere, where the Children’s Diversity & Justice Library lives, it is winter. In only a few weeks, we will experience this year’s longest night and shortest day. Many cultures and religions recognize this time of year as a time to Welcome Light whether in the form of history, myth or legend, of evergreen trees or of sun, of candles or bulbs, or of stories and songs. Warmth and community are also celebrated through food, time with loved ones, acts of service and gestures of care and love.

As we move into a time when so many faiths, traditions, families and communities celebrate light, commemorate important events and gather together we wanted to share many of our favorite winter holiday themed books. These books all also include at least one of the fourteen primary dimensions of diversity in our collection, and/or are written by people whose identities or communities have historically been under published and under represented in literature. These, and hundreds more, are available for loan, at no cost, to library patrons. Click “Borrow A Book” to learn how you can bring these and other books home. If you’re not local to our lending program, please refer to these suggestions when looking for winter holidy books. May this list help you and yours welcome light and celebrate the season.

BOARD BOOKS

• Hanukkah Lights written by David Martin, illustrated by Melissa Sweet

• My First Kwanzaa (My First Holiday) by Karen Katz

• Hanukkah: A Counting Book by Emily Sper

PICTURE BOOKS

• Winter Candle written by Jeron Ashford, illustrated by Stacey Schuett

• The Ninth Night of Hanukkah, Erica S. Perl and Shahar Kober

• A Dog Named Haku: A Holiday Story from Nepal, Amish Karanjit, Margarita Engle, Ruth Jeyaveeran and Nicole Karanjit

• The Shortest Day, Susan Cooper author, Carson Ellis illustrator 

• The Trees of the Dancing Goats by Patricia Polacco 

• Too Many Tamales - Gary Soto author, Ed Martinez illustrator

• *The Real Santa - written by Nancy Redd and illustrated by Charnell Pinkney Barlow

• Elijah’s Angel: A Story for Chanukah and Christmas by Michael J. Rosen 

• Oskar and the Eight Blessings by Tanya Simon, Mark Siegel illustrator

• Rachel’s Christmas Boat by Sophie Labelle

• Shante Keys and the New Year’s Peas by Gail Piernas-Davenport (author) and Marion Eldridge (illustrator)

• Lights of Winter: Winter Celebrations Around the World by Heather Conrad

• Snowflake Kisses and Gingerbread Smiles - Toni Trend Parker, author. Earl Anderson, illustrator.

• *Queen of the Hanukkah Dosas by Pamela Ehrenberg, illustrated by Anjan Sarkar

• *Twelve Dinging Doorbells: An Every-holiday Carol with words by Tameka Fryer Brown and pictures by Ebony Glenn

• Together for Kwanzaa by Juwanda G. Ford

• Daddy Christmas & Hanukkah Mama by Selina Alko

• I Got the Christmas Spirit by Connie Schofield-Morrison, illustrated by Frank Morrison

• A Solstice Tree for Jenny by Karen Shragg

• *Feliz New Year, Ava Gabriela! written by Alexandra Alessandri, illustrated by Addy Rivera Sonda

• Santa’s Husband, written by Daniel Kibblesmith

• Latkes and Applesauce: A Hanukkah Story story by Fran Manushkin, art by Robin Spowart

• *Seven Spools of Thread: A Kwanzaa Story - Angela Shelf Medaris, author; Daniel Minter, illustrations

• *A World of Cookies for Santa: Follow Santa’s Tasty Trip Around the World written by M. E. Furman, with illustrations from Susan Gal

PICTURE / juvenile BOOKS

• The People Remember written by Ibi Zoboi, illustrated by Loveis Wise

• Angela and the Baby Jesus written by Frank McCourt with illustrations by Raul Colon

JUVENILE BOOKS

• The Power of Light: Eight Stories for Hanukkah by Isaac Bashevis Singer 

• Hanukkah Moon by Deborah da Costa

JUVENILE / MIDDLE GRADES BOOKS

• Kwanzaa Karamu: Cooking and Crafts for a Kwanzaa Feast written by April A. Brady, illustrations by Barabara Knutson

MIDDLE GRADES

• The Return of the Light: Twelve Tales from Around the World for the Winter Solstice by Carolyn McVickar Edwards

• Aisha’s Moonlight Walk: Stories and Celebrations for the Pagan Year by Anika Stafford

• *Tru & Nelle: A Christmas Tale written by G. Neri

ADULT

• *Circle Round: Raising Children in Goddess Traditions - written by Starhawk, Diane Baker and Anne HIll, with illustrations by Sara Ceres Boore

Opening to Joy and Celebrating Light - Books for December 2021

On the surface, December may seem to be one of the most, if not the most, joyful months of the year.  In fact, if you live in North America, you can hardly avoid the frequent reminders that it is in fact “the most wonderful time of the year” (sorry for the ear worm).  No matter where you live, you likely encounter frequent reminders that this is a time of celebration, of family and social gathering, of connection, of plentiful and decadent food, and of warmth.  

Yet, for many people, finding joy at this time of year, or any time of year, takes work.  In fact, we might even consider that opening to joy is the work -- not just of this season, but of all our seasons; those on the calendar, and those we experience internally and as societies.

If opening to joy can be viewed as work, our collective work to keep ourselves whole and vibrant, then creating joy, sharing joy, finding joy in tough times and celebrating light are the means by which we accomplish this.  

This month we share books that explore Opening to Joy and Celebrating Light through creating, sharing, and finding joy, even amidst challenges, and by celebrating light wherever we find it whether that be in the sun, in evergreen plants and trees, in candle flames or in metaphor.  

The books in the curated list below, all written by or about people with identities and/or from communities that are under published and under represented in literature, each draw upon these themes.  These, and hundreds more, are all available for loan to our library patrons as well as TVUUC members and families. Click “Borrow A Book” to learn how to bring these and other books home.  If you’re not able to check books out, please refer to these suggestions when looking for books exploring how we can open to joy and celebrate light.  May they help you and yours open to joy and celebrate light.

*Monthly themes adapted from the work of Soul Matters Sharing Circle https://www.soulmatterssharingcircle.com

Creating Joy

Picture Books and up

• Little Melba and Her Big Trombone by Katheryn Russell-Brown

• What If . . . , Samantha Berger author with Mike Curato illustrator

• My Family Plays Music, Judy Cox author, Elbrite Brown illustrator

• White Flour, David LaMotte author and Jenn Hales illustrator

Middle Grades

• The Cardboard Kingdom by Chad Sell

Sharing Joy

Board Books

• Little You by Richard Van Camp and Julie Flett

Picture Books, Juvenile, and up

• Saltypie: A Choctaw Journey from Darkness Into Light written by Tim Tingle, illustrated by Karen Clarkson

• Because Amelia Smiled by David Ezra Stein

• Saturday by Oge Mora

• The Book Rescuer: How a Mensch from Massachusetts Saved Yiddish Literature written by Sue Macy, illustrated by Stacy Innerst

• When we Love Someone We Sing to Them: Cuando Amamos Cantamos by Ernesto Javier Martinez author, Maya Christina Gonzalez illustrator and Jorge Gabriel Martinez Feliciano translator

Middle Grades & up

• Once Upon an Eid: Stories of Hope and Joy by 15 Muslim Voices, Aisha Saeed Editor, Sara Alfageeh illustrator

Adult

• Outwitting History: The Amazing Adventures of a Man Who Rescued a Million Yiddish Books, Aaron Lansky

Opening to the Joy In and Around Us 

Boardbooks

• My Heart Fills With Happiness, Monique Gray Smith

Picture Books &  Up

• Magnificent Homespun Brown: A Celebration, Samara Cole Doyon author, Kaylani Juanita illustrator

• I Am Perfectly Designed written by Karamo and Jason Brown, illustrated by Anoosha Syed

• Because Amelia Smiled by David Ezra Stein

• Layla’s Happiness, Mariahadessa Ekere Tallie author, Ashleigh Corrin illustrator

Finding Joy Amidst Challenge

Picture Books, Juvenile &  up

• We Shall Overcome, Bryan Collier illustrator

• The 1619 Project: Born on the Water by Nikole Hannah-Jones author, Renee Watson author and Nikkolas Smith illustrator 

• Little Melba and Her Big Trombone by Katheryn Russell-Brown

• Saturday by Oge Mora

Middle Grades & up

• Stella by Starlight, Sharon M. Draper

• Little Man, Little Man: A Story of Childhood by James Baldwin with illustrations by Cazac

• Emmy in the Key of Code by Aimee Lucido

adult

• Raising my Rainbow: Adventures in Raising a Fabulous, Gender Creative Son by Lori Duron

• The Pretty One: On Life, Pop Culture, Disability, and Other Reasons to Fall in Love with Me, Keah Brown

Opening to Joy and Celebrating Light

Board Books

• Diwali (Celebrate the World) by Hannah Eliot and Archana Sreenivasan

• Hanukkah Lights written by David Martin, illustrated by Melissa Sweet

• My First Kwanzaa (My First Holiday) by Karen Katz

• Hanukkah: A Counting Book by Emily Sper

picture books

• Winter Candle written by Jeron Ashford, illustrated by Stacey Schuett

• The Ninth Night of Hanukkah, Erica S. Perl and Shahar Kober

• A Dog Named Haku: A Holiday Story from Nepal, Amish Karanjit, Margarita Engle, Ruth Jeyaveeran and Nicole Karanjit

• The Shortest Day, Susan Cooper author, Carson Ellis illustrator 

• The Trees of the Dancing Goats by Patricia Polacco 

• Elijah’s Angell: A Story for Chanukah and Christmas by Michael J. Rosen 

• Oskar and the Eight Blessings by Tanya Simon, Mark Siegel illustrator

• Shante Keys and the New Year’s Peas by Gail Piernas-Davenport (author) and Marion Eldridge (illustrator)

• Lights of Winter: Winter Celebrations Around the World by Heather Conrad

• Daddy Christmas & Hanukkah Mama by Selina Alko

• I Got the Christmas Spirit by Connie Schofield-Morrison, illustrated by Frank Morrison

• A Solstice Tree for Jenny by Karen Shragg

Juvenile Fiction

• The Power of Light: Eight Stories for Hanukkah by Isaac Bashevis Singer 

• Hanukkah Moon by Deborah da Costa

Middle Grades

• The Return of the Light: Twelve Tales from Around the World for the Winter Solstice by Carolyn McVickar Edwards

• Aisha’s Moonlight Walk: Stories and Celebrations for the Pagan Year by Anika Stafford