But Names Will Never Hurt Me

by Bernard Waber

How Alison Wonderland got her name and how she learned to live with it.

Genres: Picture Books

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1976

About the author

Bernard Waber was the youngest in a creative family. At age 8, he ushered in a movie theater after school, so he often saw only the last ten minutes of a movie. He made a game of inventing beginnings and middles. When he returned from a tour of duty in World War II, he entered the Philadelphia College of Art. With a diploma and a new wife, he traveled to New York City, where he began working for the Condé Nast magazines as an illustrator. Reading books to his three children inspired him to apply his pen and ink and watercolor style to his own picture books. His first book, Lorenzo, was built in 1961. Today, his characters are some of the most beloved in the library. He and his wife, Ethel, live on Long Island.

Reviews

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

The use of the second person to introduce the name of the girl. The interaction between the parents. The hilarious name! The triumph. Love.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh! Oh my goodness. Beautifully written. Everyone gets teased about something... and I think this book will help everyone, not just those with awkward names.

Still: "The names of arriving passengers were already written down on manifests required by the federal government, lists which crossed the ocean with the passengers. Records kept by the government demonstrate conclusively that immigrants left Ellis Island with the same surnames they had arrived with. The idea that names were changed at the point of entry is a myth, an urban legend promoted by a popular film. Changes were made later, by the immigrants themselves, usually during the naturalization process." https://journals.ala.org/index.php/dt....

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Little Allison gets teased because of her name. Her mother explains the story of how she got her name and tries to help her handle the teasing.