It uses the universality of birthdays has a window into multiculturalism.  Right on the first page it begins by acknowledging that though everybody in the world has a birthday, not everyone celebrates, or even knows it, and those who do celebrate have many different ways of doing so.  I really like that it begins with a map, giving children a visual grounding on where each child lives.  I also really like that the writing is in first person, with each two-page spread describing how a different child celebrates his/her birthday; though it states where each child lives, and we can presume that the children chosen may represent typical examples from their home, it avoids falling into the trap of suggesting that every child in a particular country celebrates the same way, which of course would be inaccurate.  I also like that it includes examples of children who DON’T celebrate their birthdays,  which also adds to the authenticity of the book.  The one element I wish was different is this:  Each child’s story begins with a “Happy Birthday” type message in his/her own language, and in the back is a glossary which provides pronunciation guides and translations — I really wish that at least the pronunciation guide was offered within the main body of the book.