Children's book: Thunder Boy Jr.

Overview
Thunder Boy Jr. is a 2016 picture book by Sherman Alexie, illustrated by Yuyi Morales, that follows a young Native boy who shares a name with his father and longs for one that captures his own story. Told in Thunder Boy Jr.’s lively first-person voice, the book balances humor and tenderness as it explores how names hold meaning, how children define themselves, and how families honor both tradition and individuality.

Story
The narrator is called Thunder Boy Jr., sometimes Little Thunder, because he is named after his dad, Thunder Boy Sr. He adores his father, who is big-hearted, loud, and admired, but he bristles at being a junior. The name makes him feel like a smaller echo rather than a person with his own drumbeat. He begins to daydream about new names that would come from his adventures and quirks, the way names can grow out of lived moments.

He thinks about the places he has been brave and the ways he has fun: climbing high, racing fast, muddy play, and a thrilling encounter with a killer whale whose nose he once touched. Each memory suggests a different possibility, a playful label that would announce to the world what is true about him. The imagined names are funny, bold, and specific, reflecting a child’s eye for what matters: speed, courage, curiosity, and joy.

Father and Son
Even as he pushes against being Jr., Thunder Boy’s love for his father is unwavering. The book carefully shows how both feelings can sit together: admiration for a parent and a fierce desire to be seen as oneself. His father notices the restlessness beneath his son’s jokes and boasts. In a quiet, affectionate turn, he listens and responds, showing that naming is not just a label but a recognition.

Themes
At its center, the story is about identity and voice. It celebrates the way names can be stories, not just sounds, living markers of who we have been and who we hope to be. It also explores intergenerational bonds within a Native family without reducing that culture to a single image or ritual. The yearning for a self-chosen name becomes a way to talk about agency, belonging, and respect. For children, the book models how to speak aloud a wish and how adults can meet that wish with care. For families, it suggests that tradition is strongest when it makes room for growth.

Art and Voice
Yuyi Morales’s illustrations burst with saturated color and kinetic motion. Words swoop and boom across spreads, echoing the sound of thunder as the boy leaps, rides, and imagines himself into names. The pages feel musical and theatrical, perfect for reading aloud. Alexie’s text carries a rhythm of jokes, boasts, and asides that keep the tone buoyant even as it touches deeper feelings, giving young readers both laughter and reassurance.

Resolution
The father offers a solution that honors both connection and individuality. He chooses a new name that pairs with his own without overshadowing it: if he is thunder, his son can be lightning. The image of sky and storm becomes a promise that they belong together while shining in their own ways. Thunder Boy embraces the new name, feeling seen and celebrated, and the book closes with a sense of shared power and possibility, a joyful affirmation that a child’s true name is a story told in light.