Now I do not want to give away too many spoilers this time (as I want children to actually read A New Beginning: Celebrating the Spring Equinox and discover its treasure trove of information on their own and for themselves), but as a person who is woefully ignorant when it comes to mathematics and physics, I am always in awe at the amazing knowledge of architecture, astronomy and mathematics that allowed the Mayans of Mexico to build structures that could so precisely predict the seasons. Other celebrations and festivals, such as the Hindu festival of Holi, the Jewish holiday of Passover and the Christian celebration of Easter also celebrate new beginnings, rebirth, and the start of a new planting/growing season (and let's not forget that the name Easter actually comes from an ancient Saxon goddess of springtime, whose name was Eostre). Wendy Pfeiffer's A New Beginning: Celebrating the Spring Equinox demonstrates that in many cultures, the arrival of spring is (or historically was) in fact celebrated as the beginning of a new year (the Chinese New Year, the Persian celebration of No Ruz). Informative, with a generally engaging presented narrative, this fun albeit also rather text-heavy picture book not only describes spring as a season (longer and warmer days, rebirth, the end of winter), it also highlights some of the many (and global) cultural celebrations and festivals that welcome and honour springtime.
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