The Bead Society of Los Angeles presents Bead Bazaar 2009

The Bead Society of Los Angeles is one of the oldest bead societies in the country. They were founded in 1975 by a group of bead enthusiasts. They collected and made jewelry and were educators that had a robust love of beads. Through the years they have given grants, had many educational lectures and demonstrations and they put on one of the best bead shows in Los Angeles…disclaimer, I’m a member and I participate in these shows whenever possible. I’ve even shown a TV show I was on to the group and gave a lecture on making glass beads since that was what I was doing on the show.

But if you’re in the LA area and you need beads, and who doesn’t, come on down to the Bazaar and pick some up. there will be handmade glass, vintage, glass, ancient glass…ethnic, semi-precious. The list goes on. It’s a good time for all!

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?