Brisbane Ekka Over For Another Year (Brisbane Australia)

This review is written by Arabella (6 years).

Ekka is fun for the kids and good for the adults too. In this photo, we are making a Cress head [a herb]. This activity was sponsored by Woolworths. The background is the Woolworths pavillon. You get to taste some breads, salmon on crackers, olives and much more.

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The Street Science booth was new this year and was a big hit for the kids as well as the adults. We got to make fake snow and sparkly goo. Street science do parties at a place of your choice.

Me and my brother got to make ‘ tacos in a jar’. It was very yummy and my brother ate his carrots even though he doesn’t like them. You can make it at home very simply.

Side show alley was fun .My brother enjoyed this game because he got to throw sharp darts. He won a little monkey which is why he was so happy with himself. He called it Dylan C. We went to Ekka on the last day. Even though some of the show bags were sold out, there were some that were cheaper because it was the last day and they wanted to get rid of them. Overall I love Ekka! My favorite rides were the Waterball ($10) , the Magic Circus ($6) and the Rockstar($10).

As if Diwali weren’t colorful and fun enough, The Festival of Lights: A Lift-the-flap Diwali Celebration by Namita Moolani Mehra, illustrated by Darshika Varm, makes it even more fun to read about with flaps and things to lift and pull to see more information or details in the illustrations.

The book is a story about a family getting ready for Diwali and what happens on the different days of the five-day celebration. There’s cleaning, shopping, crafting, food preparation and getting the home altar ready for the big day.

It covers decorating the outside of the house with rangoli, diyas and lanterns, buying sweets to share with family and friends, the sights and scents of the mandir (home temple), getting dressed up in new fancy clothes, the story of Diwali and celebrations with relatives.

Flaps (there are more than 140 in all) give you vocabulary words for different foods and definitions, as well as fun things like what’s inside the shopping basket or where the cat is hanging out. They also help illuminate the story of Diwali, which is the triumph of good over evil as Lord Ram defeated the demon Ravana to save his wife, Sita.

This pretty and colorful book helps kids understand what Diwali is and how it is celebrated, regardless of whether they practice it at home. This would be a nice book to keep in a classroom (it’s rated for kids ages 3-7) or to have at home to teach kids about Diwali even if it’s not something you celebrate. Where I live there are a lot of people from India so we are probably exposed to Diwali more than some other regions of America, but it’s a nice holiday to know about wherever you live.

Combine with the book Diwali and check out some fun lantern crafts and printables for kids to round out your experience.

About the book: 24 pages, hardcover, published 2025 by Wide Eyed Editions. Suggested retail prices $22.99.

Have you read?