Cardiovascular diseases, including stroke, are our nation’s No. 1 killer. To urge Americans to join the battle against these diseases, since 1963 Congress has required the President to proclaim February “American Heart Month.”

Chinese New Year Stories

• Sam and the lucky money —
  By Karen Chinn ; Pictures by Cornelius Van Wright and Ying-Hwa Hu

  Sam must decide how to spend the lucky money he’s received for Chinese New Year.

• The runaway rice cake —
  By Ying Chang Compestine ; Pictures by Tungwai Chau

  After chasing the special rice cake, Nian Gao, that their mother has made to celebrate the Chinese New Year, three poor brothers share it with an elderly woman and have their generosity richly rewarded.

• The Chinese New Year mystery —
  By Carolyn Keene ; Pictures by Jan Naimo Jones

  Nancy’s class is learning about Chinese culture, and planning to celebrate the Chinese New Year with a special parade with a dragon costume made out of feathers, sequins, gold tassels, and red silk. But right before the big day, the dragon costume disappears!

• Silk Peony, parade dragon —
  By Elizabeth Steckman ; Pictures by Carol Inouye

  How Mrs. Ming’s pet dragon, Silk Peony, becomes the official parade dragon of China.

• Lion dancer : Ernie Wan’s Chinese New Year —
  By Kate Waters and Madeline Slovenz-Low ; Photographs by Martha Cooper

  Ernie Wong prepares for the Chinese New Year celebrations and his first public performance of the lion dance.

• When the circus came to town —
  By Laurence Yep ; Drawings by Suling Wang

  Ursula lives at a stage coach station in Montana, and she’s the bravest girl in town until she loses her confidence after smallpox leaves her face badly scarred. The new Chinese cook, Ah Sam, helps find herself again, and she finds a way to give him the best Chinese New Year the West has ever seen.

Learning about the Holiday

• Chinese New Year —
  By Catherine Chambers

  Here are the traditions, ceremonies, and foods associated with the celebration of the Chinese New Year.

• Happy New Year! : Kung-hsi fa-ts’ai! —
  By Demi

  Learn the customs, traditions, foods, and lore associated with the celebration of Chinese New Year.

• Celebrating Chinese New Year —
  Diane Hoyt-Goldsmith ; Photographs By Lawrence Migdale

  A San Francisco boy and his family prepare for and enjoy their celebration of the Chinese New Year, their most important holiday.

• Chinatown —
  By William Low

  A boy and his grandmother wind their way through the streets of Chinatown, enjoying all the sights and smells of the Chinese New Year’s Day.

• Chinese New Year —
  By Dianne M. MacMillan

  Learn about the history and customs of Chinese New Year and how it is celebrated in the United States, including with the Golden Dragon Parade.

• Chinese New Year —
  By Sarah Moyse

  Learn more about the history of this festival and some of the preparations that are involved in the fifteen-day celebration.

• Chinese New Year’s dragon —
  By Rachel Sing ; Pictures by Shao Wei Liu —

  Story about a Chinese American girl and her favorite holiday. Encourages awareness and appreciation of Chinese American cultures.

• This next New Year —
  By Janet S. Wong ; Pictures by Yangsook Choi

  A family prepares to celebrate the Lunar New Year and looks forward to the good luck they hope it will bring.

The Year of the Tiger begins on 2/14/2010.

• Chinese New Year Books for Children — Here’s a list of books about the celebration, linked to our library catalog.

• Chinese New Year — Basic information from the Chinapage website

• Chinese Calendar — A guide from InfoPlease
• Chinese New Year
  — Sylvia Chong has developed a collection of information about the holiday, including customs, food and decorations
• Lunar New Year in Taiwan — See how the holiday is celebrated in Taiwan
• Celebration of the Chinese New Year — Information from the Chinese Cultural Center of San Francisco

Food and Cooking

• Chinese New Year — Information and recipes from the Food Network
• Lunar New Year: 2010 — Recipes, party tips, and a primer on the symbolism of different dishes from the Allrecipes.com website

Crafts, Games and Activities

• Chinese New Year — Activities for the classroom from the Apples4theteacher.com website
• Chinese New Year — Crafts and activities for kids from the Activity Village website
• Countdown to the New Year — A games for the new year from the PBS program, “Sagwa the Chinese Siamese cat”
• Chinese New Year Crafts, Stories & Activities — A collection from thebestkidsbooksite.com
• Crafts and Activities for Chinese New Year — From Enchanted Learning

Tet Nguyen Dan

Learn more about how the Vietnamese celebrate the lunar new year, Tet. Tet begins on February 14th and ends on February 18th.

• Traditions of Tet, the Vietnamese New Year — A description of Tet, the Vietnamese New Year from the AdoptVietnam Web site.
• Tet: Vietnamese New Year — Ideas for children’s celebrations, from the Families with Children from Vietnam support group website
• Celebrate Tet — From the AdoptVietnam website
• Vietnamese Lunar New Year — A discussion of the meaning of the Vietnamese New Year from the Vietnam-Beauty.com Web site.
• Tet Nguyen Dan — From the Diversity Calendar
• Tet Menu – Vietnamese New Year’s — A complete menu for celebrating Tet.

Mardi Gras always falls 47 days before Easter. It will be celebrated on February 16, 2010.

All About Mardi Gras

• Official Mardi Gras Home Page — Visit Virtual Bourbon Street, see broadcasts of the parades, and more

• MardiGras.com — You’ll find the BourboCam, games, electronic cards, schedules of events, etc., at this colorful site

• Mardi Gras from NewOrleans.com — Another complete guide to the Mardi Gras celebration

• Mardi Gras on the Net — Learn about the history of the celebration

Mardi Gras Recipes

• Mardi Gras — Mardi Gras favorites from Allrecipes.com.
• Mardi Gras Recipes — A selection of Mardi Gras recipes, menus and entertaining ideas from TasteOfHome.com
• Mardi Gras Recipes — More recipes from cooksrecipes.