This cute picture book addresses the concept of diversity through the medium of names. Thao Lam includes pictures of herself and lots of experiences she had growing up that made her feel different - focusing on her name. Her signature collage art is wonderful and diverse and really illustrates her feelings of otherness well. This would make a good one on one read conversation starter with a child on how differences are great and what make us human - but focusing on differences or making others feel less than because of them is harmful. It would also make a good group read aloud for the same reasons.

One thing I would change if I could - I wish the author had actually told us very specifically how to pronounce her name! There was one page where she said to leave out the "h" when saying it, but don't forget the "h" when writing it. So, does that mean it's pronounced like adding a "t" to the beginning of the word "ow" (like you say when you get hurt)? That's my assumption, but it's left unclear in the book, which seems weird since the point of the book was to help us understand the author's feelings about her name and familiarize us with it. Still, I recommend this book and will check the author's website and try and find out exactly how to say her name before I read it to any kids.

Disclaimer: I received a free electronic copy of this book from OwlKids through Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Thao is gorgeously illustrated (and I especially appreciated the use of childhood photos of Thao herself as a way to differentiate her from her classmates) and I understand the concept of making sure you're pronouncing a person's name correctly (my last name is a doozy for most people). That said, this picture book just left me feeling kind of meh. It's good, but I wasn't completely wowed by it.

The collage art style was perfect for the story being told! This was a beautifully engaging picture book about uniqueness and acceptance.
Then the ending came up much too abruptly, and I felt like we were missing at least 3 more pages.

Adorable book. Something that I can really relate to as an immigrant kid and I'm sure a lot of kids would benefit from having seen books like this in their classrooms.

An innovative picture book about the frustrations of having a name that most Americans don't know how to pronounce so instead make a mockery of. Pair this book with Your Name is a Song to discuss the sacredness of names and the need to learn them rather than feign ignorance.

My only criticism is that I wanted the book to be longer. Just as I was leaning in and loving the story, I felt like it ended.

On the surface, Thao is a simple story about having a name that is continually mispronounced, but names hold a lot of power. Our identities are often intertwined with our names and have the ability to negatively affect us when no seems to get it right; thus, the desire to have a name that is more familiar and easier to pronounce--I am speaking from personal experience. Individuals with unfamiliar names (and potentially even those with unconventionally spelled names) will be able to relate to Thao Lam's story and will applaud the ending, which encourages individuals to be proud of their name and who they are.

This short picture book resonates so much with me as I, myself, am Vietnamese living in a Western country. In elementary school, students and teachers alike would struggle with pronouncing my Vietnamese name which in turn made me hate my name because why could no one pronounce it? So as a child, I asked my mum to change my name to Jennifer/Jenny as well but of course, being the Vietnamese mum that she is, she dismissed that proposition. But being an adult now, I'm very proud of my name and my heritage. Therefore, I would love to show my future children this lovely book.

This is a great story about a little girl struggling with her name. The illustrations are beautiful! I can’t wait to share this book with my students.

A fantastic picture book that celebrates inclusiveness and diversity. Thao picks a different name because hers is hard to say, but in the end she learns to embrace who she is and appreciate her culture. Addresses the issues of name mispronunciation and the frustration and impact of teachers and other students not learning your name.

THAO is a #OwnVoices story about Thao and her experiences having a name that was difficult for some people to announce. She talks about how it would be easier if she had a different name and how everyone seems to call her the wrong name (most of these names are rude). Thao decides she's going to change her name to Jennifer until she sits down for lunch and sees that her mother packed her favorite lunch, goi cuon. Because this food is from her culture she is reminded that her name is important to her and who she is as a person.

I think the message for this story is great. I know growing up I had teachers that wouldn't even try to pronounce student's names or would horribly butcher it so it's nice to see a book discussing this topic. Children shouldn't have to be called names such as "Tao the cow," "Yellow," or "China Girl." These names are extremely hurtful and we need to educate students at a young age about this.

I found the art in this book interesting. It's like a scrapbook style book. There are pictures of Thao from when she was a child but the other characters look like they were made out of paper. Some of the writing through the story is also made to look like it was written by Thao.

The subject of this book is one that needs to be discussed with children so I think all should read it. I think this would be an especially great book if you have a child or student in your class that has a name that may be difficult to pronounce or that holds meaning to their family or culture

“THAO” by Thao Lam is a beautiful children’s book about a little girl whose name no one in her new country seems able to pronounce correctly. While feeling frustrated that everyone mispronounces her name in very weird ways, she wishes she had a simpler, “Western”, name that would be easily pronounced. In her frustration though, she comes to realize that her name is part of her identity, and is not something that she would truly be willing to change.

The art style is beautiful. It mixes illustrations with real photograph scraps, and includes pictures of the author as a child. It is very unique, and reminded me of a different book that I read earlier this year written by Thao Lam , “The Paper Boat”. Having read two of her children’s picture books already, I can confidently say that I am a fan of her art style and that she is very skilled at balancing art and words to weave the story she is telling in her books.

This book will make a great addition to classroom libraries all over the world. As our world becomes more and more globalized, people from all over the world migrate to different countries and children eventually end up attending school there. One of the most important (and simplest) things that teachers and fellow classmates can do to make someone new feel welcome is learn to say their name correctly. I look forward to sharing this book with the students at my school. Thank you NetGalley and OwlKids Books for the opportunity to read this beautiful book in exchange for my honest review.

I received an electronic ARC from OwlKids Books through NetGalley.
Lam shares her own story. She shares about how difficult it was when people mispronounced her name. She even went through a time when she wanted to be called Jennifer instead. Readers will connect with her journey and find someone they can identify with. The story is told with minimal words and fully detailed illustrations.

This is a cute book that tries to tackle names that are not Anglo-Saxon, as well as cultures that are not as well. In this book, the child of Vietnamese decent is upset because no one can say her name.

So, she decides to become Jennifer. And that works too, until she gets her favorite Vietnamese food, and realizes that she can't pretend to be someone else.

The only thing that was a little confusing was how to <em>actually</em> pronounce her name. Telling us to just remove the "h" doesn't quite tell us.


Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

Thao is a beautiful book of personhood, naming, and identity. Thao Lam takes us on a verbal and visual journey, and I loved the combination of these two elements. It was poetic and visually appealing, and I would gladly add this book to my personal or classroom library. So much potential for teaching and engaging young readers, and for thinking about identity!

This was a cute book but maybe I missed it. How do you properly pronounce her name? I loved the illustrations and scrapbook/ paste up effects. Definitely something I would share with children with unique names.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an electronic copy to read and review.

This is a beautiful book about the importance of your name. It reminds me of so many others, like the Name Jar. Thao is a young student who is grappling with the mispronunciation of her name. Should she change it to make it easier on others or maintain her given name? Just a brilliant book.

In a quirky scrapbook/journal/doodle style that I loved for it's uniqueness and the way it was captivating, this book talks about how hard it is to be different as a kid. How it's hard to have a different name, and look different. But I think it ends well.

New from the author of “The Paper Boat” and “My Cat Looks Like My Dad,” “THAO” is an autobiographical picture book about struggling with one’s name. Following Lam herself as she hears her name constantly mispronounced and sees it frequently misspelled, the book highlights the struggles of being different before ultimately urging young people to embrace. their identities and names and to stand up for their right to be identified correctly.

Unfortunately, I was disappointed by the lack of narrative arc or practical suggestions for how to standup for oneself. “THAO” felt whiny and capricious, and her choice to switch names and then switch back is underdeveloped (and therefore unbelievable). I see value in the message, but that message lacks the packaging we expect in an illustrated text to make it less overtly didactic.

I loved the premise and illustrations of this book, but it ends a bit abruptly. Thao is a little girl whose name is constantly mispronounced by others. She gets justifiably frustrated and wants to change her name to something common and easy to pronounce. She ultimately changes her name, but is still the same girl and likes the same things. After realizing she's still the same, she goes back to her name and lets the reader know how to pronounce it. As someone whose name was/is still often mispronounced, I really identified with this feeling of frustration and wanting to fit in. I think an extra page or two with her parents explaining the meaning and importance of her name would've made the book better for me. This book would be great for pre-school to kindergarten aged children.

Thank you Owlkids Books and NetGalley for providing this ARC.