Planet party - Iain Gately

'On almost any given day of every year, at some point on the globe, people will be gathering together in celebration - to stage parades, to venerate their gods, to dress up in disguise, or to strip to their skins and abandon themselves to pleasure . . .' Essential reading for the traveling or armchair hedonist, PLANET PARTY is a tour of the world's greatest festivals - a multicultural voyage of celebration across the continents and through the seasons. Its itinerary includes such famous events as the Munich Oktoberfest, Trinidad Carnival and the running of the bulls in Pamplona, and also lesser known, if equally exciting spectacles like Derbyshire's 1,000-a-side Shrovetide football match, and the Burning Man Project, a fire festival staged in a remote American desert. In addition to providing an impression of what it feels like to be at each event, PLANET PARTY examines the history and philosophies behind them, exploring matters as diverse as ideal beauty, the Hindu concept of rebirth, and the origins of beer drinking. Stimulating and richly coloured, PLANET PARTY is an erudite study of our love of celebration.