The Weird, True Facts series tackles holidays in this high-interest offering, which takes a global look at strange celebrations. Examples of the different ways people celebrate the same holiday around the world abound, as do wacky religious traditions. Some have historical roots (like the Italian re-creation of the 1194 revolt), and others honor local beliefs (the Monkey Buffet Festival in Thailand), while others are far simpler (the Gilroy Garlic Festival in California). Each holiday gets only one brief paragraph, so this serves best as a jumping-off point, and more organization could have served to alleviate confusion (the color scheme sometimes causes different holidays to blend together). Still, the glossy, often weird photographs are eye-catching, and the concept and example customs are intriguing enough to spur further research.
—Booklist, October 2017
