A Dragon Called Spark: A Hanukkah Story by Lily Murray, illustrated by Kirsti Beautyman (Kalaniot Books, 32 pages, ages 4-8). Eva’s adjusting to a new home as Hanukkah is approaching. She sees children playing outside her window and feels lonely, comforting herself that she still has her little dragon named Spark. The first Hanukkah candle is lit and placed in the window, and the next day a neighbor named Charlie comments on it, promising to look for more. The next night, the family takes some latkes and jelly donuts to Charlie’s house, and the kids get to know each other better. Eva tells Charlie about Spark, and Charlie finds that he can see Spark, too! At the park the next day, Eva overhears Charlie telling other kids about Spark and worries they are laughing at her, but Charlie assures her they all want to see the dragon. Eva uses her storytelling talents to help them all find their own dragons, and much to her surprise, by the final night of Hanukkah, she and Spark are surrounded by a new group of friends–both human and dragon. Includes additional information about Hanukkah.

Hanukkah traditions are skillfully woven into this story about making friends in a new place and the power of imagination, play, and stories. Kids can decide if they think the dragons are real or imaginary and look for evidence for either argument in the text and the illustrations. This would make a great companion to A Dragon for Hanukkah by Sarah Mlynowski.

Dasher and the Polar Bear by Matt Tavares (Candlewick, 40 pages, ages 4-8). In her spare time before Christmas Eve, Dasher loves going on adventures. One night she sees the Northern Lights and flies toward them for a better view. When she lands, she encounters a large polar bear named George who scares her at first, but who turns out to be a kind friend who’s intrigued by her flying. When he tries it out, though, he lands with a huge splash in the icy sea. When Dasher gets home, she tells her mother about George, wondering why Christmas magic doesn’t work for everyone. Her mother assures her that it does, just in different ways, and Dasher gets to see what she means on Christmas Eve. After emptying his bag, Santa heads for George’s home, where he offers the polar bear a ride in the sleigh, which George describes as “exhilarating!” and “positively unforgettable!” Back home, Dasher tells her mother that seeing George so happy was her favorite part of Christmas Eve.

This sequel to Dasher and Dasher Can’t Wait for Christmas provides another satisfying holiday tale with amazing illustrations of reindeer, Santa, the Northern Lights, and George, a new character with a hilariously rich vocabulary. Fans of the other Dasher books will not be disappointed.

The Snowball Fight by Beth Ferry, illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld (Clarion Books, 48 pages, ages 3-8). Neighborhood friends enjoy a snow day that starts with the creation of two forts armed with plenty of snowballs. After lobbing these at each other for a while, one of the forts gets buried in snow that falls off a nearby roof, creating the perfect conditions for sledding. From there, it’s time to go inside for a cookie and hot chocolate break, but three marshmallows floating side by side in the cocoa remind the friends that they never built a snowman. Back outside they go to enjoy the final hours of their snow day.

This author-illustrator team never disappoints, and their latest creation comes at a perfect time, with 3-6 inches in the forecast here for tomorrow. The rhyming text is simple but catchy, and would be equally fun to listen to or to use for some reading practice, while the simple illustrations perfectly captures the chilly fun of playing in the snow, and the cozy warmth of heading inside.

The Old Sleigh by Jarrett Pumphrey and Jerome Pumphrey (Norton Young Readers, 48 pages, ages 4-8). The Pumphrey brothers are back again with a holiday follow-up to The Old Truck and The Old Boat. The sleigh in this story is used to transport firewood in a small town, a boy and his dad working together to chop it, load the sleigh, and deliver it to the delighted townspeople who use it for warmth and light. But when the town grows, so do the loads of wood until one day, the old sleigh breaks in half. While Dad repairs it, the boy makes his own small sled so that he can continue to bring wood to his favorite customers. Finally, the old sleigh is repaired, and the work continues. The last page shows the old sleigh, now painted the same red as the boy’s sled, with a driver who looks like a grown-up version of the boy, delivering wood in the “small city.”

This deceptively simple story celebrates community, winter, and the circle of life as the town grows, but the boy and his father continue to serve their community, bringing both actual and metaphorical warmth and light with their firewood deliveries. While not specifically a holiday book, this has a definite December vibe, and would make a great gift or read-aloud in the last few weeks of school before vacation.

When Alexander Graced the Table by Alexander Smalls and Denene Millner, illustrated by Frank Morrison (Denene Millner Books/Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers). Alexander loves Sunday dinners, which start on Saturday night with the whole extended family cooking and prepping for the big feast. His mom is at the center of it all, Alexander working at her side, but his quiet dad always seems too busy to notice. When Alexander makes franks and beans all by himself one Saturday night, he’s crushed that Dad doesn’t want a sample. His mom knows what to do, though: she puts Alexander to work baking Dad’s favorite dessert, and the next day reveals his creation to the whole family. Alexander holds his breath as his father takes the first bite of his lemon icebox pie, and the whole world seems to stand still as Dad chews it slowly. Finally, he speaks, “That’s some good pie,” he says, creating a memory that Alexander will cherish forever. Includes a recipe for the pie.

I wasn’t familiar with Alexander Smalls, but apparently he’s a famous chef, and his fans will undoubtedly enjoy this story about his first forays into cooking. The illustrations colorfully capture the happy chaos of a family dinner and the mouth-watering food created by so many cooks. I wish there had been a little back matter to allow Smalls to tell more of his story.

Family Feast! by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Frank Morrison (Crown Books for Young Readers, 32 pages, ages 4-8). Pops and Big Ma are up at 5 to start making dinner while family members make the drive to get there in time to help. The rollicking rhyming text and busy illustrations show a growing crowd, young and old, and the delicious abundance of food making its way to the table. Finally, grace is said, and the feast begins. Afterwards, children race through the house, Uncle snores, and Big Ma smiles benevolently on the whole scene until the family heads out to their cars to drive back home again, wrapping up with the repeating refrain, “Tastes like home when family meet/A bond so warm, so strong, so sweet.”

Another book full of delicious food and family fun brought to you by an award-winning author-illustrator team. Although no holiday is cited, this would be a great choice for reading at Thanksgiving or any time in December. It could also serve as a writing prompt for describing a family tradition, using the strong verbs and adjectives throughout the story as examples.

Scary Shark: A Jaw-Some Halloween by Mike Lowery (Orchard Books, 32 pages, ages 4-8). Edgar the shark is too scared of everything having to do with Halloween to want to go trick-or-treating, so his friend Lotta the crab eases him into it. They start by carving pumpkins (Lotta uses claws, Edgar uses teeth), then move on to decorating, and finally costumes. After deciding to be Count Sharkula, Edgar freaks out a little when he sees monsters outside his window, but Lotta shows him they’re just friends in costumes. Finally, Edgar’s ready to join the fun, and the two swim out the door and into a spooky underwater town just right for trick-or-treating.

I’m familiar with Mike Lowery’s Gingerbread Man books, but I didn’t know about his shark series, which includes Pizza Shark and Santa Shark. They’re sure to be popular with their comic-style artwork, lots of cartoon bubbles, and puns galore. One can never have too many Halloween books, and this one will be a big hit.

The Gift of Words by Peter H. Reynolds (Orchard Books, available October 7, 40 pages, ages 4-8). In this follow-up to Reynolds’s The Word Collector, Jerome is looking for some good holiday words to add to his collection and to give as gifts to his family and friends. In town, he sees words like, “Sale!”, “Cheap stuff!”, and “Violators will be towed”, none of which seem right for the holidays. The newsstand is even worse, with its headlines about war, poverty, and climate change. Jerome tries listening to the words around him, but they turn out to be complaints or angry commands (“Hurry up!”). He goes back home, where he pulls a selection of the right words from his collection, then heads to the park to decorate a tree. He invites others to add their own words, and before long, the tree is covered with words such as listen, hope, and epiphany, as well as phrases like peace on earth and savor each moment.

Like many Peter H. Reynolds books, the message isn’t exactly subtle (in case you missed it, the last page says “‘Share your positive words. May they inspire peace on Earth.’ – Peter H. Reynolds”), but this is a lovely book for the winter season that spreads a positive message without specifying a particular holiday. The ending practically begs for a bulletin board featuring a tree that kids can decorate with their own words.

Thanks to Scholastic for providing me with review copies of both of these books!

Crack the Cascarón: An Eggcellent Not-Just-for-Easter Shellebration by Sara Andrea Fajardo, illustrated by Rocío Arreola Mendoza (Knopf Books for Young Readers, 40 pages, ages 4-8). Toti has declared himself the King of Cascarones and has big plans for the upcoming weekend celebration (presumably Easter). Not content with the traditional confetti cascarones, Toti makes tiny stealth ones as well as some that are filled with slime. The night before the big day, while Toti is sleeping, the rest of his family raids some of his hiding places. When Toti wakes up the next morning, no one’s in the house, and when he goes to look for them in the yard, it’s an ambush! His parents, sister, and abuela inform him that not only is his plan not all it was cracked up to be, but the yolk’s on him as they bombard him with his own creations. He finally hands over his crown to Abuela, who declares herself the Queen of Cascarones. Just wait ’til next year.

I loved meeting Tito and his family, who clearly enjoy each other and aren’t afraid to pull some good-natured pranks. Although Easter is never mentioned, this would make a great read-aloud for the holiday or any time in the spring. Spanish words are mixed in with the English text, celebrating Tito’s family’s heritage. I wish there had been some back matter telling more about the cascarón tradition and maybe giving instructions on how to make them.

A Purr-fect Passover by Jenna Waldman, illustrated by Erica J. Chen (Apples & Honey Press, 32 pages, ages 3-7). An adorable group of kitties gets ready for Passover, preparing special foods like matzah bread, gelfite fish, and matzah balls. When the seder begins, the kittens enjoy dinner as well as traditions like the Four Questions and a retelling of the story of Moses and Pharaoh. Then there’s dancing, sweets, and the search for the afikoman. When the guests leave, it’s time for clean-up, and then bedtime with sweet dreams of the holiday. Includes instructions for making a matzah cover like the one pictured in the story.

This cute rhyming story makes a good introduction to Passover for the youngest kids, covering many aspects of the holiday with fun and engaging text and illustrations. Again, a little more back matter would have been a nice addition, especially for those who don’t celebrate Passover.