Top 7 Chinese New Year Books

Chinese New Year will start on Feb. 19 this year. It is going to be the year of Goat! What are the traditions? How do the Chinese celebrate it? Are there any fun activities for kids to work on? Here are the top 7 books on Chinese New Year.

Celebrating Chinese New Year: An Activity Book

This is a fun-filled craft activity book. In addition to facts and descriptions of traditions, Children can make lanterns, dragon parades, and red envelopes, etc. It is an excellent resource book for parents and teachers of children 5-10 years old.

The Dancing Dragon
“Kindergarten-Grade 2-In rhymed couplets, a Chinese-American child describes the excitement, preparation, and festivities of the Chinese New Year, culminating in a parade that includes a magnificent dragon carried aloft on sticks. The format of the book is foldout cardboard; for best effect, after reading it aloud, stand it on a table to show the eight-page panorama of this fine, fierce creature and the appreciative throng of celebrators in the streets of Chinatown. ” Quote from School Journal
This is an exciting experience for young children to listen to the story and see the dragon unfolds in front of their eyes.

Lion Dancer: Ernie Wan’s Chinese New Year
This is a story about a 6-year-old boy, Ernie Wan, whose family lives in New York’s Chinatown. This year he plays in the lion dance in the Chinese new year celebration. This book shows all his preparations for the celebration, which is interesting for readers to follow through. The photos in the book provide vivid images of how the celebrations are done. This is a good book for children at the age of 4-12.

Sam and the Lucky Money
This is a really good fiction book. It tells the story of one boy who wants to spend the lucky money he receives from his grandfather on anything of his choice. He soon finds out that the money is not enough. After a slight disappointment, he gives his money to a barefoot stranger. It is a great book which does not only shows the Chinese New Year celebrations but also a lesson of parents and teacher’s love. A story about generosity.

Long-Long’s New Year: A Story About the Chinese Spring Festival
This book tells a story of a child, long-long, who goes to the market to sell cabbage to make some money to buy food and decorations for the Chinese Spring Festival. The story is nice, the illustration is really beautiful.

Great Race
This book is a retelling of a traditional Chinese legend of the zodiac. 13 animals joined the great race. Which one won the No. 1 position, and what happened to the 13rd?

The Sheep Beauty
For the year of Sheep, we have to include a nice book of sheep. In this story, a kind physician rescued an injured sheep on his way. He took care of the sheep and saved its life. One evening, a monster came and threatened to kill all the people in the village. The sheep turned into a lovely girl. With the help of smart plan, she manages to frighten the beast away and saved the village. This book is in both English and Chinese, so it is a good reading material for children with some Chinese knowledge.

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If you want to know more about supplies for Chinese new year celebrations and culture studies, have a look at SUPPLIES FOR CHINESE NEW YEAR AND CULTURE CELEBRATION.

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