The Lunar New Year is known by several names including the Korean Solnal, Spring Festival, Vietnamese Tet, and a few more. The celebrations are often celebrated in Asian cultures, and it begins with the first new moon of the lunar calendar. The celebrations end on the first full moon in the calendar, which is generally 15 days later.
The celebrations are centered around culture, traditions, and family. This year the Lunar New Year begins on February 1, 2022, and planning for the festivals are already likely underway. Starting with a thorough cleaning of the home, buying the ingredients for the feast, and getting the lanterns ready for the Lantern Festival, there’s a lot that goes into making the celebrations a memorable one.
For parents wanting to introduce the holiday to their kids, here are 15 picture books about the Lunar New Year that are perfect for little readers.
'Alex’s Good Fortune'
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In this sweet book, Alex is excited to share her culture and traditions with her best friend, Ethan. Alex teaches Ethan about the dragon dance at the Chinese New Year parade and how to make dumplings. They also take in the beautiful sights at the lantern festival, too.
'Bringing in the New Year'
This fun story follows a Chinese-American family as they get ready to celebrate the Lunar New Year. The family makes sure all the decorations are up, prepares some dumplings, and gears up to celebrate with fireworks, dragon parades, lanterns, and love for their friends and family. The book is full of beautiful, bright illustrations that kids will love.
'The 12 Days of Lunar New Year'
The 12 Days of Lunar New Year takes the reader through the events that lead up to the big celebration. This book counts all the ways families can honor their ancestors and culture and build and strengthen the community. It’s got adorable rhymes and bright pictures to look through over and over again.
'Chinese New Year: A Mr. Men Little Miss Book'
So many of us grew up reading the Mr. Men and Little Miss books and there’s a new book out to celebrate Chinese New Year. Little Miss Neat is hosting a Chinese New Year party and she’s invited all her very best friends. They’re celebrating with traditional decorations, a feast for all, and rounding out the fun with a dragon dance.
'Mulan's Lunar New Year'
The Lunar New Year is a favorite for Disney’s Mulan and that’s what this book celebrates. For fans of the Disney princesses, kids will love flipping though the pictures and reading all about the traditions of the Lunar New Year. This year, Mulan is old enough to help with the planning, and while there are struggles, it’s full of magical moments.
'The Runaway Wok: A Chinese New Year Tale'
A boy goes on an unexpected learning adventure after going to the market and picking up an old wok instead of the food he was asked to bring home.
'D Is for Dragon Dance'
The Lunar New Year is a time to celebrate and that’s what two siblings are excited to do. In this book, we meet a family who are getting ready for their celebrations, including grandma and grandpa, as the family creates decorations and prepares a feast that everyone will remember.
'Our Lunar New Year'
Take an adventure through the story of several families that shows how each celebrates the New Year with their own traditions. Xaio Mi, Hang, Gwan, Malai, and Charu share how they honor the celebrations in their Chinese, Korean, Thai, Vietnamese, and Indian families.
'Lunar New Year (Celebrate the World)'
This board book is filled with incredible illustrations that capture the awe of the Lunar New Year. The story follows a family who are getting ready for the winter solstice and celebrating the Lunar New Year, the Spring Festival, and the Chinese New Year. Kiddos learn about the dragon dance, the light lanterns, and the importance of spending time with family.
'Peppa's Chinese New Year'
For the kids who really love their Peppa Pig stories, she’s learning all about the Lunar New Year, too. In this book, Peppa hears from Madame Gazelle who teaches the kids all about the Chinese New Year, and everyone is excited. They learn how to hang lanterns, the significance behind a dragon dance, and enjoy fortune cookies, too.
'New Year'
The Lunar New Year is typically spent surrounded by family, but what happens when family is far away? That’s what this story follows — a dad who wants to be with his daughter who lives in another country during Lunar New Year. Instead, he imagines how she’s celebrating the day, while missing her, and the complicated feelings that come with distance. This is a book for the older kids, but could be a lovely story to read to the younger ones as well.
'Mindy Kim and the Lunar New Year Parade'
This story follows a young girl named Mindy who is excited to celebrate the Lunar New Year. However, it’s going to be the first celebration without her mom, so she’s surrounding herself with traditions to help her through it. She’s celebrating the traditional Korean New Year with rice cake soup and trying to navigate the feelings that come.
'Baby's First Chinese New Year'
The Baby’s First line of books are some of the first reads to land in a kid’s library, and there’s one to help baby learn about the Chinese New Year, too. This book introduces a little one to the traditions and culture, with pictures of the dragon dances, family, and delicious food.
‘Goldy Luck and the Three Pandas’
A fun retelling of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Goldy Luck was asked to take a plate of turnip cakes to her neighbors, the Chans. They weren’t home, but that didn’t stop Goldy from taking a taste of the rice porridge and trying out their beds and their chairs, too. Along the way, Goldy meets a new friend, and the story centers around the upcoming Chinese New Year.
‘Baby Loves Lunar Phases on Chinese New Year!’
Bright pictures and a lot to learn, this book celebrates the Chinese New Year with a little babe who’s learning all about the science behind lunar phases. It’s easily digestible information for curious minds, and it finds that right balance between educational and memorable storytelling.
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