Celebrated African-American artist Faith Ringgold, whose Tar Beach was awarded a Caldecott Honor in 1992, turns in this picture-book to the world of Christmas carols, offering her illustrative interpretations of five traditional songs, together with the performance of the Boys Choir of Harlem. After a brief quotation from the Holy Scripture, telling the Christmas story, the text of each carol - Silent Night; O Come, All Ye Faithful; O Holy Night; Hark! the Herald Angels Sing; and Joy to the World - is presented, together with Ringgold's artwork. A CD, included at the rear of the book, presents the performance of the songs by the choir...

As someone who loves Christmas carols, and has an annual project to track down new (or new to me) picture-books devoted to them, I picked up O Holy Night: Christmas With The Boys Choir of Harlem at my public library with great anticipation. I'm familiar with Ringgold, of course, and know that The Boys Choir of Harlem is considered a New York institution. I enjoyed perusing Ringgold's boldly colorful artwork, which features mostly African-Americans in the various roles of Holy Family, angels, shepherds and Wise Men. Listening to the CD was an added bonus, although not really necessary for my enjoyment of the book, as I usually sing the carols to myself, while reading such titles. Recommended to anyone who enjoys Christmas carol picture-books, to fans of Faith Ringgold, or to readers seeking children's Christmas books with an African-American setting. ( )