Reviews

My Name Is Sangoel by Catherine Stock, Khadra Mohammed, Karen Lynn Williams

jaij7's review against another edition

4.0

A great book for explaining refugees and why they need our help.

librariandest's review against another edition

4.0

Many people change their names when they move to the United States so Americans will have an easier time with pronunciation. This is a story about not changing your name. It's about holding on to your identity and reaching out to your new community at the same time. What a wonderful lesson for all kids in the age of globalization.

Note: If you're going to share this, make sure to read through it once first so you're pronouncing Sangoel correctly throughout.

heisereads's review against another edition

4.0

A powerful book to share about refugees, identity, and the power of one's name.
Pair with [b:The Name Jar|814357|The Name Jar|Yangsook Choi|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1435975003s/814357.jpg|800281], or [b:Calling the Water Drum|27791902|Calling the Water Drum|Latisha Redding|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1476278772s/27791902.jpg|47767956], [b:The Treasure Box|17204314|The Treasure Box|Margaret Wild|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1359542755s/17204314.jpg|23681770], [b:The Journey|28818766|The Journey|Francesca Sanna|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1461083247s/28818766.jpg|49036152], [b:My Beautiful Birds|30221337|My Beautiful Birds|Suzanne Del Rizzo|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1502206815s/30221337.jpg|50674942], [b:Stepping Stones: A Refugee Family's Journey|30205595|Stepping Stones A Refugee Family's Journey|Margriet Ruurs|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1463563733s/30205595.jpg|50655850], [b:Where Will I Live?|31259052|Where Will I Live?|Rosemary McCarney|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1482163100s/31259052.jpg|51915196], [b:Her Right Foot|34523572|Her Right Foot|Dave Eggers|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1495780720s/34523572.jpg|55657999] for a refugee/immigration text set.

lvv205's review against another edition

5.0

This a wonderful book about a refugee family. The main storyline is how Sangoel struggles to keep his name once his family is in America, as well as the correct pronunciation.

tooamy's review against another edition

5.0

Sangoel is a refugee from the Sudan who emigrates to the US with his mother and sister. He learns to be proud of his name and his culture that it represents.

jennybeastie's review against another edition

5.0

Immigrant and refugee experience for younger kids, in a well done picture book format. Also, soccer.

academianut's review against another edition

4.0

Beautiful depiction of a refugee family's difficult but resilient experience, and Sangoel's pride in his ancestral name and disappointment when he feels he has lost it when others can't pronounce it - but his creativity in the end, finding a way to share it with his classmates, is brilliant and fun, and connects him to others while retaining his individual identity.

hitya's review against another edition

5.0

What a beautiful story about the importance of our names.

libscote's review against another edition

4.0

I like this one, and I think it'd be a fun project to do at the beginning of the year with all students to practice learning names. No idea yet how I would tackle Samantha, but I think it'd be important for kids to do.

bibliogirl's review

5.0

This book is wonderful for exploring perspective. Kids are shocked when Sangoel's family has to learn to use forks, and when his little sister cries at the television. Because it's told so simply, students are able to empathize with the family's hardships as they are exposed to the realities of immigrants' lives. They were really delighted with Sangoel's solution to the problem of no one being able to pronounce his name. It's genuinely kid-level genius. This is one of a list I loosely call "My Name" books. I share several around the concept of being a child coming to a new country and finding a place one's own. When I recently shared it with my third graders, I was most moved by one quiet young student's being inspired to share that when his Grandmother came from Vietnam, her name was changed.