Holiday Symbols and Customs: A Guide to the Legend and Lore Behind the People, Places, Food, Animals, and Other Symbols and Customs Associated With Holidays and Holy Days, Feasts

Book by Sue Ellen Thompson

This edition of Holiday Symbols and Customs is the newest in a series of books Thompson has written in this subject area. The new edition, which explores the origins of more than 1,000 well-known symbols and customs, has been expanded to include some major annual sporting events, such as the Super Bowl and the Kentucky Derby, as well as more nonreligious events and Native American celebrations. The book is written to appeal to a wide audience, including students, teachers, and librarians seeking information related to a variety of holidays and celebrations.

Entries are arranged alphabetically by the name of the holiday or event. Each identifies the type of holiday; when and where it is celebrated or observed; a list of traditions, symbols, and customs; colors associated with the holiday, if any; closely related holidays; and contact information and Web sites. In addition, each entry includes a brief essay discussing the historic and folkloric origins of the holiday, followed by a section on the meanings of the symbols or customs. Each entry has a list of further reading for additional research.

This book contains more detailed information about holidays than Anniversaries and Holidays (ALA, 2000) or The Folklore of World Holidays (Gale, 1992). It would have benefited by having a bibliography for the whole volume that includes those works cited repeatedly throughout. The information is easy to read and use, but the choice of entries seems a little unusual (for example, why include the Kentucky Derby but not the Belmont Stakes and why the Arctic Winter Games but not the more well-known Iditarod dogsled races?).

Recommended for those school and public libraries whose budgets will handle another holiday reference book, but for those with previous editions or other holiday reference tools, this may be an optional purchase. RBB
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved