Say My Name

From New York Times bestselling author Joanna Ho comes a powerful new picture book about the beauty, meaning, and history behind the names of six different children —exploring their cultures and ethnicities, and emphasizing the importance of identity and saying names correctly.

My name is a window to my world, a door to my destiny, a key to unlock, the dreams of my ancestors, the hopes of my family, and the divine that lives within.

Names are music, each infused with a unique rhythm and melody that gives it life on the tips of our tongues. Names reveal generational ties and histories, weaving an intricate tale of the past before a word is even spoken. Names—and correctly saying them—are important as each one carries the hopes, dreams, and traditions of those that came before us.

In Say My Name, six kids introduce themselves and convey the rich histories of their names and cultures: Hé Xiao-Guang, Ofa Kivaha Tupoumalohi, Bijan Hosseini, Nizhoni Yazzie, Xóchitl Luna, and Akosua Acheampong.

These captivating kids of Chinese, Tongan, Persian, Navajo, Mexican, and Ghanaian descent proudly celebrate their names and languages, and those that came before them.

New York Times bestselling author Joanna Ho’s lyrical writing delicately shows us that names are both beautiful and meaningful, and learning to say a person’s name is the only way one can truly know another. 

Joanna Ho is passionate about equity in books and education. She has been an English teacher, a dean, and a professional development mastermind. She is currently the vice principal of a high school in the San Francisco Bay Area. Homemade chocolate chip cookies, outdoor adventures, and dance parties with her kids make Joanna’s eyes crinkle into crescent moons. Her books for young readers include Eyes That Kiss in the Corners