Chrysanthemum loves her name. She loves the way it sounds. She loves how her name looks written with icing on her birthday cake.

But when she gets to school, and her classmates tease her long name, Chrysanthemum begins to doubt that her name is as special as she thought it was.

This book is for a slightly older audience because of the more advanced vocabulary. There are also a few things only grown-ups will catch in the illustrations.

Personally, I’d love to have a name as unique as Chrysanthemum. For those of you who don’t know, my name is Alexandra, Alex for short. Sometimes I wish my name was something different. Mainly because Alex is such a common name. Secondly, because it is also a boy’s name. I make that comment because, in 7th-grade math, my homework papers kept getting mixed up with a boy Alex who misbehaved in class. The teacher even sent my mother a letter saying how bad “I” was in class. That’s when I started writing my full name on my homework and test papers.

My dad has a pretty unique name. His name is Floyd. Or, as my grandma pronounces it, ‘Ploid.’ Or as a Starbucks in France pronounced it, ‘Flowy.’

Speaking of unique names, here’s a shout-out to two girls in my neighborhood with the best names I’ve ever heard, Verabelle and Nova.

If you have an extraordinary name, share below in the comment section.