A Celebration of Customs & Rituals of the World [Hardcover]

Robert Ingpen (Author), Phillip Wilkinson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1996

Explores initiation rites, wedding feasts, harvest celebrations, religious rituals, and many other customs used around the world to mark all kinds of special occasions.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Gr. 5^-8. Whether located in the Australian outback or the court of Queen Elizabeth II, human societies share a rich tradition of ceremonies marked by fascinating customs and rituals. Divided into four large topics, this survey highlights how we celebrate birth, coming-of-age (male and female), marriage, death, and other important passages. Common rituals like eating and gift giving are covered as well. Rich full-color illustrations, some of them showing partial nudity, and detailed captions help bring more meaning to these sometimes complex ceremonies. Denia Hester

From Kirkus Reviews

The title says it: a lavishly illustrated encyclopedia of traditional and contemporary customs and rituals representing cultures from every corner of the globe. In a clearly written text, Wilkinson (The Master Builders, 1994, etc.) makes sense of the variety of rites that accompany significant events in life, including childbirth, holidays, weddings, harvest, religious and artistic celebrations, and funerals. Ingpen demonstrates the universality of these rituals in beautiful montage illustrations; e.g., in the coverage of wedding dances, he depicts the Wodaabe men of Niger, Czech married women, and Cajun bridesmaids. Author and illustrator consistently attempt to stand outside their own culture, eschewing ethnocentrism, to convey the meaning of the ceremonial and spiritual ties that bind all people. In a world where religious, racial, and cultural differences often lead to conflict, this book may convince readers that what cultures share, through ritual and custom, is much more important than what divides them. (index) (Nonfiction. 10+) -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Facts on File (April 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0816034796
• ISBN-13: 978-0816034796
• Product Dimensions: 12.3 x 9.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,778,840 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The colorful diversity of ceremonies., January 17, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: A Celebration of Customs & Rituals of the World (Hardcover)

"Celebration" is the right word.
Wilkinson and Ingpen portray the world's ceremonies of development (from birth to death), surviving (hunting and harvesting, eating and drinking, healing), socializing (initiation, gift-giving, dispute-settlement), and aspects of spirituality in this clearly written, beautifully illustrated work.
The ceremonial dress from all areas of the world is particularly striking, and the reader begins to see the universality of human experience beneath the colorful variations of cultural expressions; "perfect symbols of the unity of the family of mankind".
With a Calendar of Customs, suggestions for further reading, and an excellent index, this well produced, generously sized work would make an excellent gift for children as well as adults. Highly recommended.

(The "score" rating is an ineradicable feature of the page. This reviewer does not "score" books.)

3.0 out of 5 stars rituals and customs, March 4, 2011

By 

haku-chan37 (TX, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Celebration of Customs & Rituals of the World (Hardcover)

A good introduction of cultural customs and rituals with wonderful illustrations. I feel the book was suited for a younger age group, 10-14, than say 18+. It covered a broad spectrum of cultures, including some African tribes. The book even provided several in-depth explanations to some customs including childbirth, funerals, marriage. The a calendar of holidays over the world which I was delighted to see. The only downside was that it seemed too vague and while the illustrations had short captions by them I would've liked to see more emphasis on unifying cultural aspects. Altogether, it was organized, ideal for beginners or older children. I would recommend to teachers and students in history and anthropology.