Today is the first day of the a holiday observed by Muslim people called Ramadan. This holiday lasts one lunar month – which means it starts right after the new moon and goes until the next new moon. During this month, people observing the holiday will fast, which means they do not eat anything from dawn until dusk. The Arabic word for this time is sawm.

Because a lunar calendar follows the cycle of the moon, Ramadan falls on a different day each year. This year it happens during the spring, but each year it will get a little bit earlier so sometimes it will happen in the winter, fall or summer.

A new book we added to our library recently is called The Gift of Ramadan and it is a story of a young girl, Sophia, during the month of Ramadan as she practices fasting for the first time.