The Name Jar explores questions about difference, identity, and cultural assimilation. When Unhei, a young Korean girl, moves to America with her family and arrives at a new school, she begins to wonder if she should also choose a new name. Her classmates suggest Daisy, Miranda, Lex, and more, but nothing seems to fit. Does she need an American name? How will she choose? And what should she do about her Korean name? Throughout The Name Jar, questions about difference and identity underlie Unhei’s consideration of taking an American name rather than using her given Korean name at school. Is it good to be different or bad to be different? How do we respond to difference? Is a name just another word, or it is something more? How closely is one’s identity connected to one’s name? What are the implications of changing one’s name?

Join us for a special virtual reading and art demonstration by children's book author and illustrator Yangsook Choi. Children will explore themes related to identity, assimilation, and celebrating differences. Please bring your sketchbook, crayons, and colored pencils! 

Speakers 

Yangsook Choi grew up in Korea. She started drawing at age 4 and loved telling her grandma scary stories. After moving to New York to pursue her art, she has written and illustrated many books for young readers. Her books have been acclaimed as "Best of the Best" by the Chicago Public Library, included on the American Library Association Notable Books List, and have received the International Reading Association's Children's Book Award. Her past jobs include waiting tables at a Korean BBQ restaurant, flying as a flight attendant, handwriting a message on a life preserver, and drawing tiny pictures on fake nails. When she is not creating, she loves to spend time with children in her community and around the world. The local children in a shelter, the mountain children in the Himalayas, the Bedouin children in the Arabian desert, the orphans in flooded Cambodia, and the North Korean defector children are among her greatest teachers.