Alma and How She Got Her Name

A 2019 Caldecott Honor Book

"A beautifully illustrated, tender story to be shared with all children, sure to evoke conversations about their names." --School Library Journal (starred review)

If you ask her, Alma Sofia Esperanza José Pura Candela has way too many names: six! How did such a small person wind up with such a large name? Alma turns to Daddy for an answer and learns of Sofia, the grandmother who loved books and flowers; Esperanza, the great-grandmother who longed to travel; José, the grandfather who was an artist; and other namesakes, too. As she hears the story of her name, Alma starts to think it might be a perfect fit after all--and realizes that she will one day have her own story to tell. In her 2019 Caldecott Honor Book, Juana Martinez-Neal opens a treasure box of discovery for children who may be curious about their own origin stories or names.

Author: Juana Martinez-Neal
Publisher: Candlewick Press (MA)
Published: 04/10/2018
Pages: 32
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.85lbs
Size: 9.31h x 9.75w x 0.44d
ISBN: 9780763693558
Audience: Ages 4-8

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 2.2
Point Value: 0.5
Interest Level: Lower Grade
Quiz #/Name: 195946 / Alma and How She Got Her Name


Award: Caldecott Medal - Honor Book
Award: Ezra Jack Keats Book Award - Honor Book


Review Citation(s):
Booklist 02/01/2018 pg. 52
Publishers Weekly 01/29/2018
Kirkus Reviews 02/15/2018
Shelf Awareness 04/20/2018
School Library Journal 03/01/2018 pg. 88
Horn Book Magazine 05/01/2018 pg. 111
Hornbook Guide to Children 07/01/2018 - Superior,Well Above Average

About the Author
Juana Martinez-Neal is the Peruvian-born daughter and granddaughter of painters. Her debut as an author-illustrator, Alma and How She Got Her Name, was awarded a Caldecott Honor and was published in Spanish as Alma y cómo obtuvo su nombre. She also illustrated La Princesa and the Pea by Susan Middleton Elya, for which she won a Pura Belpré Illustrator Award, Babymoon by Hayley Barrett, Swashby and the Sea by Beth Ferry, and Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story by Kevin Noble Maillard, which won a Robert F. Sibert Medal. Juana Martinez-Neal lives in Connecticut with her family. Visit her online at www.juanamartinezneal.com.