Our Favorite Day of the Year by A.E. Ali, illustrated by Rahele Jomepour Bell

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Our Favorite Day of the Year
by A.E. Ali
illustrated by Rahele Jomepour Bell
Review Copy from Salaam Reads

With a gentle but powerful story of friendship and diversity, Our Favorite Day of the Year is perfection and needs to be read in every classroom, library and home in America. 

On Musa's first day of kindergarten, his teacher, Ms. Gupta, tells her class to look around the room because these unfamiliar faces "will become your closest friends by the end of the year." By sharing their favorite day of the year with the class during show-and-tell, students will learn about each other and celebrate together throughout the year. Musa and his table mates, Moisés, Mo and Kevin, are the focus of the story, sharing Eid Mubarak,  Rosh Hashanah, Las Posadas and Pi Day, along with their traditions and treats, at show-and-tell as the school year unfolds. Ali does a marvelous job capturing, especially for young audiences, the aspects of each holiday that make it special for the celebrant, from food to family, as well as the joy experienced. As the book comes to a close, Ms. Gupta gives her class one more gift - a calendar with many holidays on it, telling them, "That way you can always remember when we're not together to celebrate the days that brought us together."

When we share with each other, there is more to celebrate!


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