When his grandmother calls him to dinner Lalo pretends not to hear, because he’s playing with his white friends and he doesn’t like that name. Really though, he could have chosen much better than Bobby Brown. Still, his grandparents play along, calling him by his new moniker as they wonder if he likes the same things as Lalo did, which finally gets him thinking.
One thing I didn’t like was that even though he’s the one who lied, it was him being rude to the other kids. But at least he learned his lesson. This one hits close to home, though my ending was different; I didn’t have a little blonde girl who wanted to play with me either.
3.5 pushed up to 4/5

Lalo Ramirez does not like his name. He wants a "normal name" and tells his new friends to call him Bobby Brown. Lalo is a wonderful hispanic boy who loves his abuelos. When they tell him they are not related to Bobby Brown, he becomes worried and has a terrible dream. The next morning he realizes that he is Lalo Ramirez and should be proud of his name. The illustrations are great, large and colourful as well as child friendly.

Although the story does not come right out and say it, the assumption is that Lalo does not like his name because of his culture. He does not want to be rejected or teased because of his name. In this time, Canada and the US are very culturally diverse countries and it is important to recognize and accept everyone regardless of their nationality and heritage. Children need to be taught to be proud of that heritage and share their customs with others. This is a good book to use with students when teaching about cultures, multiculturalism, acceptance and racial issues.

Sadly I have only given this book 2 stars - it could have been more if the story was developed further - in the book Lalo doesn't like his name and now wants to be called - Bobby Brown - the book doesn't say where he got his name from, why its unusual and why he is called it. I didn't really like the grandparents response either - just not a book for me.

It’s not unusual for kids not to like their name for one reason or another. I have a predominantly male name, and it was a pain growing up. Lalo does not like his name either and would rather be called Bobby Brown. While that is an unfortunate name to pick for so many reasons, we are never given a reason that Lalo doesn’t like his name except that it’s not a “real name”. I wonder if that is because it’s a term of endearment, or because it is a cultural name that is not standard boring us English. Lalo learns that your name is who you are, and that his connect him to his family. An interesting story, but I think it could be developed more. More about why he doesn’t like his name, or more on why he has his name.

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Names hold great importance in every culture. The story of Lalo and his struggles with trying to fit in in terms of his name find true for many students in our classroom. While the book was good and discussing an important topic I feel it fell short in bringing real depth of conversation to the table. There were missed opportunities and I just wanted to see more discussion between Lalo and his abuelos as well as with his peers.

This adorable children's story nurtures a strong sense of appreciation for one's cultural heritage even when those characteristics may cause one to appear different from their peers.

This is a very sweet book focusing on children's cultural identity and heritage, and I think the message is portrayed in a very simple and child-friendly way. I particularly like that there's not a single patch of white space throughout the entire book - packed full of colour and great illustrations. The only thing I think could be better is the font used - it looks a little archaic and out of place with a children's book, and perhaps may have looked better with a sans-serif font. On the whole thought, this is a heartwarming little book.