Yoko Writes Her Name
Hyperion, 2008
In an earlier book, Yoko was singled out for the strange ethnic foods she brought to school. This time, Yoko's way of writing her name in Japanese hiragana ようこ, and numbers in Japanese kanji 一二三, leads to more teasing from her schoolmates. Their ignorance and unkindness leave Yoko worried that she might not graduate from kindergarten, though it is only the first week of school. The next day, Yoko reads a Japanese book to the class, and although most react negatively, Angelo is curious. He and Yoko teach each other, and soon their enthusiasm spreads to their classmates. Rosemary Wells' cheerful illustrations are bordered by patterns inspired by Japanese textile design and punctuated with paired, bilingual picture flashcards of everyday things like dog いぬ and hand て.
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