Parents' Guide to

Lost My Name Books

By Regan McMahon, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 4+

Fun, personalized tale of kid's quest to find lost name.

Book David Cadji-Newby Picture Book 2015
Lost My Name Books Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this book.

Community Reviews

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age 3+

Based on 2 parent reviews

Penelope C.
Penelope C. Parent
January 2, 2017
age 4+

Great idea; terrible execution

The idea of the book being personalized to a child's name is brilliant, really. The ability to choose which animal for each letter is even better. But the content itself is terribly clumsy. Everything is in awkward rhyme -- rhyming for the sake of rhyming without paying attention to the natural flow of language. The tone is casual, but there are slang phrases and references young kids typically wouldn't understand. My child wants to read this every day because it has her name in it (we received this as a gift), but I summarize as I read because I can't bring myself to read this drivel to her. The illustrations are colorful but not captivating. Even the entire point of the book -- to find the lost name -- is poorly done. The name is just thrown onto the last page like an afterthought with no clear resolution about it. I think this could have been an amazing idea, but as it is, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
Diane S.
Diane S. Parent
December 29, 2016
age 2+

Fabulous addition to my grandsons library

I purchased this for my 3 year old grandson for Christmas and he was a captivated audience. He loves when grandma reads with him and this book is a huge success. He makes me read it over and over.

This title has:

Educational value
Great messages
Great role models
See all 2 parent reviews

What's the Story?

A boy -- or girl -- wakes up to find the name on his or her door gone. The kid then sets out on a quest to find the "lost" name and encounters people and creatures along the way, each of whom gives the kid one letter of his or her own name (such as a knight who gives a K followed by an aardvark who gives an A, in a book about a little girl named Katie) that sequentially add up to the reader's whole name on the last page.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: (2):
Kids say: Not yet rated

This adventurous alphabet book is an international marketing success that also happens to be a cute story with appealing art kids will enjoy. It's been a hit in numerous countries, as it works for both genders and is available in nine languages. It features a clever rhyming text and ends with the kid main character tucked safely in bed, making it a good choice for a bedtime book.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about personalized stories. What's fun about the main character having your name?

  • What's your favorite alphabet book?

  • Imagine an adventure story where you meet a bunch of different creatures. Then draw the creatures in the story.

Book Details

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