The Complete Kwanzaa: Celebrating Our Cultural Harvest

A resource guide to Kwanzaa is organized around the seven principles and describes the traditions, practices, and cultural foundations of the holiday

Kwanzaa is an African American holiday that began in 1966 as the brainchild of a black studies professsor, Dr. Maulana Karenga. It's an occasion celebrated from December 26 to January 1 and organized around seven principles-unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith. In this work, which is helpful in understanding the custom, Riley (My Soul Looks Back 'Less I Forget, LJ 8/93) has illuminated each Kwanzaa principle with chapters replete with poetry, life stories of noted personalities who have benefited from using that particular system, quotations, folktales, and proverbs. Numerous books have been written on this practice, many for children. Two to consider are Karenga's The African American Holiday of Kwanzaa (Univ. of Sankore Pr., 1989) and Haki R. Madhubuti's Kwanzaa (Third World Pr., 1987). A good source, especially for young adult collections.
Ann Burns, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.