Yanni and his donkey, Lamia, are a familiar sight on the streets of their small Greek village. Every morning they can be seen going from house to house collecting trash in an old wagon in need of new wheels. Before Yanni's father left to find work in Germany, he told Yanni to take care of his mother and to keep the family business going. Collecting trash is hard work, and the boys in the village make it even harder. Whenever they see Yanni and Lamia coming, they shout, "Ho, ho, your donkey's lame and Yanni Rubbish is your name!" Yanni tries his best to ignore the boys. Still, the words hurt, especially the unkind words about Lamia, whom he loves. there must be some way to stop the boys from teasing him. After talking things over with his mother, Yanni comes up with a wonderful plan. Shulamith Levey Oppenheim's warm-hearted and uplifting story is illustrated by Doug Chayka.

 

There are 32 pages in this book. This book was published 2005 by Boyds Mills Press .

Shulamith Levey Oppenheim has written a number of highly praised books for children. She lives in Amherst, Massachusetts, with her husband, Felix.