Día de los Muertos

Celebrate the World

by Hannah Eliot, Jorge Gutiérrez (Illustrator)

Learn all about the traditions of Día de los Muertos with this second book in the brand-new board book series Celebrate the World, which highlights special occasions and holidays across the globe.

At the end of October each year, it’s time to celebrate an ancient Día de los Muertos! With vibrant illustrations by Golden Globe–winning Mexican illustrator Jorge Gutierrez, this festive board book teaches that Día de los Muertos honors ancestors and loved ones who have passed. From sugar skulls to papel picado , this is a holiday that truly commemorates the cycle of life.

Genres: Picture Books, Holiday, Childrens, Nonfiction, Cultural, Latinx, Religion

24 pages, Board Book

Published July 24, 2018

About the author

Hannah Eliot is a children’s book editor who lives in Manhattan, New York. Her favorite activities include editing (of course), writing, painting, and doodling all over every piece of notebook paper she uses.

Reviews

[Mila Reads Alot ☕ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesomely written & beautiful colors inside the books.

[Esperanza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dia de los Muertos is a great book to introduce students to this traditional Mexican holiday. The book includes keywords that are shown both in spanish and english. It takes the reader from the preparation leading up to the holiday, during the holiday, and afterwards. The book is beautifully illustrated with bright colors and wacky drawings, making the holiday seem not so scary for the younger reader.
This book would be great to use during the month of October, when we are celebrating Halloween and to show our students that other cultures celebrate their own holiday that month. Although day of the dead is November 1st. This would also be a great book to use during Hispanic heritage month or to teach students some spanish words. The book is a short fast read perfect for any elementary school grade. This is one of my favorite books to read outloud to my children.

[Ad Astra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful as well as educational

[Urbandale Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

This bilingual board book was colorful, informative, and fun to read aloud with my niece. It describes the origin, customs, and traditions associated with Dia de los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead.

[Mary Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure why this book needed to be a board book...

[Baroness · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a delightful short read that shows you how vital and fun it is to honor and celebrate Life and Death.

[Alyson Martinez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mateo loved it 10/10 no notes

[Mrs. Melaugh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This second book in a new Celebrate the World series packs a lot of information about the Día de los Muertos, or Dead of the Dead, into a small board book package. During this celebration, which lasts several days starting at the end of October, the focus is on remembering family and friends that have passed on and keeping in mind that life is fleeting. Ahead of time, people are shown making preparations intended to draw the spirits to share the festivities, such as cooking special food and drink, and putting out flowers whose scent helps guide the spirits. During one of the days, many families gather at graveyards to clean their relatives’ tombstones, tell stories, and play music. A scattering of Spanish words are included with context that makes clear their meaning. Playful, stylized illustrations by Jorge Gutierrez take this already above average informational book and make it a standout.

[Johanna Florez · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the racial diversity of the Mexicans celebrating Dia de los Muertos! Probably the last thing a child would notice in this colorful book, but I appreciated it.

[Tonja Drecker · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great way to introduce children to a holiday they may not have heard of before and discover more about the world around them.

With 24 pages, this is a sturdy little board book, perfect for small hands. The cover and pages will hold up to small accidents and a bit of roughness. The traditions and reasons for celebrating Dia de los Muertos are explained clearly, while still allowing the excitement the holiday brings to still filter in. The text uses simple enough vocabulary for kids to understand, while still allowing some lesser known, cultural words to filter in.

The illustrations are as expected from Jorge Gutierrez—a real treat. He has brought the holiday across in a vibrant, exciting way while still keeping the foundations of the celebration clear. There are many small details in the drawings to make sure children come back and investigate them on their own.

While there are many great things to this book, I'm not sure it's fitting for the board book age group. The text is fairly long for the youngest listeners and the illustrations, while beautiful, don't always depict the situations clear enough for board book audiences to understand. Slightly older listeners/readers would slide into these pages without a problem, but unfortunately, the older age group (who would enjoy this book the most) will most likely not be willing to pick up a board book.

Still, it's a wonderful story which does a terrific job in introducing Dia de los Muertos to kids.

I received a complimentary copy a found it such a wonderful idea and book that I wanted to leave my honest thoughts.

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this "Celebrate the World" board book series! Even though they are board books, I think any older children willing to read a "board book" would get something out of them. Hannah Eliot does such a great job with the text. The illustrators vary, and I like some better than others, but overall it's a great series. I just read the one for Día de los Muertos. This is one where I feel Eliot's text shines but the illustration style just wasn't aesthetically pleasing to me though a lot of detail is packed into them, which I appreciated. The text explains not only some of the traditions and activities associated with Dia de los Muertos but also the heart and meaning behind the celebration. For example, "We do all this to celebrate the beauty of life and death rather than mourn it." and "the special holiday reminds us to enjoy life all year round. And it reminds us to honor our loved ones. This way they stay in our hearts forever."

[Fatima · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about Dia de Los Muertos, which is a holiday that Hispanic families celebrate at the end of October up until the first week of November. This book does an incredible job in describing the holiday to the reader. It is super easy to read as well. The illustrations are magnificent, really detailed and vibrant. The book does a great job in showing what occurs throughout this holiday. I love how the author included words such as “altares”and “cempasúchil” and proceeded to translate it to english so that the reader knows what she is talking about. I found this to be a good method for students who are bilingual, but also a great way to get other students to learn new vocabulary in another language. This is definitely a book I would have in a classroom, it’s really educational, especially for those who are not very familiar with the holiday. The style of writing was different from a normal book, this one had italicized spanish words and the format of the letters were different, making it fun for students to read.

[Samantha Tanigawa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dia de los Muertos is a great easy read for the classroom. It uses bright illustrations and easy words to follow and understand while you learn about the holiday Day of the Dead. It explains why the holiday is celebrated, how to celebrate, and gives lots of examples around the traditions of the holiday. I appreciate how it teaches the Hispanic culture by explaining pieces so that the reader can truly understand the meaning and intent of the holiday.

Since this is a cultural piece I would be interested to see which of my students know what Dia de los Muertos is and what they know. I would do this by doing a KWL chart. Primary grades can co-create a chart of this and intermediate grades can fill their own in. Then I always like to do a writing assignment (depending on the holiday or cultural event) and an art piece to go along with the lesson. Then we can hang it up in the classroom for everyone to see.

[Erin Buhr · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you're looking for books to introduce your child to Day of the Dead this is a good one. It is part of a series of books, called Celebrate the World, about special occasions and holidays across the globe. It is thorough but also brief - the best of both worlds. I love the way Spanish words were integrated into the text and I love the bold, detail rich illustrations. The only downside of this book for me is that it was published in board book format and I feel like due to the length and complexity of the text it is better suited for the 4-5+ crowd. If your kids, like mine, are not bothered at 7 years old by picking up a board book then this is a great book to share. 

[Marsha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Goofy illustrations, reminiscent of the animation from The Book of Life celebrate one of Mexico’s most festive holidays. It’s hard to find the terror in a holiday about death that features tasty food, colorful shrines to the dearly departed and gigantic skeletons set in silly poses.

The colors are garish, in lurid fuchsia, lime green or sunshine yellow, just the sort to appeal to very young children. The sense of family participation due to what amounts to arts and crafts enhances the joy participants must feel during this holiday. Far from being scary, the book reminds you that Día de los Muertos is a time of happiness and fond memories.

[E. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our son received this book as a gift because Coco had been his first film in the cinema. These drawings are delightful and engaging and the book is a great introduction. The book is part of a series of books introducing holidays from around the world. We ordered the rest in the series and pre-ordered the next one.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

My public library has a TON of Halloween books, but a small amount of other celebrated holidays. I was so excited to get this book for my library and my patrons loved it! I even had a little boy explain to me what Dia de los Muertos meant, he did such a wonderful job! The illustrations are great and I'm so glad we got this to expand our rural public library's diverse collections!

[Deborah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderfully illustrated book that teaches us about Dia de los Muertos and the traditions surrounding the holiday. Text is mostly in English but Spanish words and their meanings are throughout the book teaching us the names and traditions of the holiday. I would recommend for slightly older elementary children but younger children will definitely enjoy the illustrations.

[Whitney · Rating 5 out of 5]

I saw this and picked it up for a class today. The pictures really do a good job of teaching about a holiday many children may not know about and the culture that it is a part of. I'm definitely going to look up the other books by this author.

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

The imagery is absolutely spectacular in this (partially) bilingual board book. The story is brief yet descriptive of the traditions and preparations for the Mexico-based celebration. I loved how the various celebratory images coupled the Spanish and English words.

[Angela De Groot · Rating 4 out of 5]

With flowers, sugar skulls, and atole, Day of the Dead celebrates the cycle of life while honoring lost loved ones. A special holiday that reminds us to savor life as those who have passed on stay in our hearts forever

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful Picture Book

A beautiful picture book about Dia De Los Muertos a holiday in Mexico. The illustrations are just gorgeous and are perfect for the story. Nice information for young kids. Looks like a holiday that we’d all want to celebrate!

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a darling board book! The typeface is easy to read and defines Spanish words that are used.
The illustrations are vivid and fun without being too chaotic. While it's too young for the students I teach, I'd highly recommend it for babies and young children.

[Elysian Fields · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book. So beautifully illustrated and the story highlights the important aspects of the celebration. This is hands down a gorgeous must have board book! We read it 5 times, just the first night.

[Bethe · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a board book format (or ebook that I read) there is a surprising amount of information on the Day of the Dead celebration. Vibrant, sometimes silly, always full of heart, illustrations. Nice intro to the holiday.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent introduction to the holiday that will be appropriate for children from ages 5 and up. Really nice illustrations also!

[Miss Ryoko · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had to read this board book the illustrations! They were really fun! And I appreciated the Fairly Odd Parents vibe

[Jamie Murdock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations and a wonderful bite-sized history of an fascinating tradition.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like this book because they gather flowers and then they dump them on the ground. It's mostly just celebrated in Mexico, but it's celebrated in other places, and that's what the book says.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love that this was chosen to be a board book!