A E Ali

Musa's feeling nervous about his first day of school. He's not used to being away from home and he doesn't know any of the other kids in his class. And when he meets classmates Moisés, Mo, and Kevin, Musa isn't sure they'll have much in common. But over the course of the year, the four boys learn more about each other, the holidays they celebrate, their favorite foods, and what they like about school. The more they share with each other, the closer they become, until Musa can't imagine any show more better friends.

In this charming story of friendship and celebrating differences, young readers can discover how entering a new friendship with an open mind and sharing parts of yourself brings people together. And the calendar of holidays at the end of the book will delight children as they identify special events they can celebrate with friends throughout the year. show less

Shelf Awareness

Musa is dubious when his teacher tells the class, "Look around the room. You don't know them now, but these faces will become some of your closest friends this year." Ms. Gupta tells them that the first day of school is her favorite day, and that for show-and-tell, each student will get to talk about their favorite day of the year. For Musa, that's easy - it's Eid! Musa's table-mates Moises, Mo, and Kevin share about Christmas/Las Posadas, Rosh Hashanah, and Pi Day, show more respectively. Ms. Gupta and the rest of the class joyfully participate in classroom celebrations, complete with decorations and food. Back matter includes a paragraph each about Eid al-Fitr, Rosh Hashanah, Las Posadas, and Pi Day, although there is no pronunciation guide.

Gorgeously diverse; outstanding.

See also: School's First Day of School by Adam Rex show less

A beautiful book full of detailed illustrations that make the children's favorite holidays come alive. I would read this one with older children, as it the concepts are fairly advanced for toddlers or young preschoolers. Great for kindergarten on up, though. For my storytime, this is too long and involved, but for a classroom setting, it would work well.

I absolutely love this book. Students share their favorite day of the year, which is quite a variety! Then on their day, they share about their day- whether it's culture, tradition, food, words, family... and at the end, the teacher makes a calendar with each student's favorite day in it so they can all remember each other.