Groundhog Day
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The Funtastic Festivities Booklists compile stories that relate to fun and festive days so that readers of all ages can join the celebration with a good book!
Today is Groundhog Day and our groundhog celebrity Punxsutawney Phil has given his prediction: he didn’t see his shadow, meaning we have an early spring on the way. But why do we have this tradition of a groundhog predicting the weather’s future? The Pennsylvania Dutch developed this tradition based on Candlemas, where the clergy would give a blessing and distribute candles for the winter. The Pennslyvania Dutch took this idea and selected an animal to predict their needs for winter, thus a groundhog was selected and Groundhog Day was established in Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.
Another way we celebrate this holiday is by watching Groundhog Day (1993), a movie where the protagonist finds himself repeating the same day over and over again.
![Ground Hog Day GIFs | Tenor](https://media1.tenor.com/m/AAMlkVnDjXgAAAAC/its-groundhog-day-again-reporting.gif)
Whichever way you choose, let’s enjoy Groundhog Day today!
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Geoffrey Groundhog Predicts the Weather, by Bruce Koscielniak (Clarion Books) — Fiction, Picture Book, Animals, Holidays / Seasons / Celebrations, ages 4-6.
Groundhog Day, by Margaret McNamara; illus. Mike Gordon (Simon & Schuster / Simon Spotlight) — Fiction, Early Reader, Animals, Holidays / Seasons / Celebrations, Series, ages 4-6.
Groundhog Day! (New & Updated), by Gail Gibbons (Holiday House / Pixel Ink / Peachtree) — Nonfiction, Picture Book, Animals, Holidays / Seasons / Celebrations, ages 4-6.
Groundhog Gets It Wrong, by Jessica Townes; illus. Nicole Miles (Dial Books) — Fiction, Picture, Animals, Humor, Holidays / Seasons / Celebrations, ages 4-6.
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Groundhog Weather School: Fun Facts About Weather and Groundhogs, by Joan Holub; illus. Kristin Sorra (Penguin Random House / G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers) — Fiction, Picture Book, Holidays / Seasons / Celebrations, Animals, ages 4-6.
Groundhog’s Day Off, by Robb Pearlman; illus. Brett Helquist (Bloomsbury USA Childrens) — Fiction, Picture Book, Animals, Holidays / Seasons / Celebrations, Humor, ages 4-6.
Groundhog’s Dilemma, by Kristen Remenar; illus. Matt Faulkner (Charlesbridge Publishing) — Fiction, Picture Book, Folklore / Fairytales / Myths, Animals, ages 4-6.
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Groundhog’s Runaway Shadow, written and illustrated by David Biedrzycki (Charlesbridge Publishing) — Fiction, Picture, Animals, Holidays / Seasons / Celebrations, ages 4-6.
Groundhug Day, by Anne Marie Pace; illus. Christopher Denise (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers) — Fiction, Picture Book, Animals, Holidays / Seasons / Celebrations, Humor, ages 4-6.
The Lilies, by Quinn Diacon-Furtado (HarperCollins / HarperTeen) — Fiction, Prose, Sci-Fi, LGBTQIA+, Mystery / Thriller, Teen.
Time After Time (Best Wishes #3), by Sarah Mlynowski and Christina Soontornvat (Scholastic Press) — Fiction, Prose, Fantasy, Humor, Series, ages 7-12.
Celebrate Groundhog Day by reading a book!
List compiled by CBC’s resident trivia expert, Sommer Wissner. Check out other book lists on our blog.