Every Month Is a New Year

The passing of the year celebrated round the world through verse and collage.

While many regard Jan. 1 as the first day of the calendar year, in this magnificent collaboration, Singer and Roth show that cultural observances of that new beginning happen each month. Presenting 16 celebrations from over 14 countries, they explore 12 months’ worth of events that mark time’s passage. “From the earth’s movement, / from the moon’s phases, / these clocks and calendars / we create. / Together /… / we / celebrate.” Such remembrances can involve purification rituals, whether “washing the bad away” in April, by cleaning house and starting “the new year right / with a gigantic water fight” in Thailand, or setting “the bad ablaze” in Ecuador, at midnight on Dec. 31, by burning giant effigies representing the “año viejo.” Scots look ahead to the “First Footer” (or visitor); Spaniards try to eat 12 grapes in 12 seconds for good luck—“so each new month will be sweet.” Throughout the collection, which opens like a wall calendar, each of Roth’s intricate collages animates Singer’s verse, bursting with texture in a riot of color. “Happy New Year” in 15 languages precedes extensive notes, a glossary and pronunciation guide, and an impressive list of sources.

A visually and sonically stunning introduction to the importance of appreciating time and the change of seasons throughout the world: a multicultural gem. (Picture book/poetry. 4-12)

Fittingly taking the shape of a calendar, this graceful grouping of more than a dozen poems showcases new year celebrations, both secular and religious, from across the globe and throughout the year. Lines from "Smashing the Pots," about the Kemetic holiday of Wep Ronpet, crystallize the book's intent: "Everyone believes in a different beginning./ But what is true and what is clear/ is that all of us hope for a luminous year." The poems are framed by calendar-style grids filled with thematic collage elements, and dramatic scenes of shared meals (for Nowruz in Iran), flying kites (for Matariki in New Zealand), and other festivities appear in the main images above. Closing notes thoroughly explore the holidays Singer introduces, closing out a lovely collection that both looks back at tradition and forward to new beginnings, wherever one might live. Ages 7-10. Illustrator's agent: Victoria Wells Arms, Wells Arms Literary. (Apr.)

Gr 3-6--A rich compendium of poetry, collage, and cultural and historical information on various New Year celebrations from a celebrated poet. Formatted to resemble a calendar, the book is to be held horizontally with the top page of each spread depicting a scene and the bottom one, the poem. (With the labeled monthly scenes, from December on to the next December, educators might be tempted to actually hang this on the wall for ongoing use and enjoyment.) Singer's opening poem, rephrased at the end, acknowledges the turning of the year. ("We choose the date./From the earth's movement, /from the moon's phases, /these clocks and calendars/we create.") Sixteen poems are written from the perspective of children and detail events such as Año Viejo, the ball drop in New York City, the first day of Muharram, Rosh Hashanah, and more. Roth skillfully assembles myriad colorful papers in broad swatches and tiny bits, some skillfully cut and others torn, into bright, busy views. People gather around the holiday table, smash pots, dance, splash water, and much more. Quieter opening and closing views of Earth in space and the vivid red dragon are here, too. The substantial end materials include a page explaining calendar history and variation, a list of New Year's greetings from each country, five full pages of background information about each celebration, a glossary of terms used in the verse, and a long list of the author's sources. VERDICT A complex and rewarding package that will be cherished by children and adults alike. A strong choice for poetry collections.--Margaret Bush, Simmons College, Boston