Chrysanthemum and Identity

My author study this past week reminded me of an author I haven't thought about since my childhood. Kevin Henkes is an acclaimed children's book author and illustrator, but I have to confess that before the project I was only familiar with on of his books--Chrysanthemum. I remember my elementary school guidance counselor reading it to my class during a lesson on bullying. Although my name isn't as unique as Chrysanthemum's, by this time in my childhood I had had my fair share of mispronunciations and misspelled certificates. By nine years old, I was so tired of being called Elsie that I declared I was changing the spelling of my name to Elyse. I eventually switched back to the legal spelling, but all of my friends from that time still spell my name with a y, and my most-used email address still documents this childhood sensitivity.

When I reread the book for my author study, I was struck by Chrysanthemum's father's concern for his daughter's unhappiness regarding her name. After she declares her hatred for her name, he can be seen reading books on childhood anxiety and identity. As an educator, I try to have this same sensitivity to just how much of a student's identity is connected to what they want to be called. I can't help but think that perhaps some of that attitude came from reading Chrysanthemum in my formative years.

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