My name is Natalia and I’m the author of “The Spanglish Girl / La Chica Espanglish” and “The Mexiglish Girl / La Chica Mexiglish” and publisher of Bilingo Books. I publish bilingual children’s books with the intent of helping kids feel proud of their dual heritage.
I’m half Spanish and half English and grew up speaking both languages. When I was a child, there weren’t any bilingual books around which could have helped me feel proud of my dual heritage. I also didn’t know many bilingual kids so I did feel quite different from my school mates. I was constantly battling my two identities and at times got confused. Fast forward 20 years and the global pandemic hit, making me redundant from my job. I’d always dreamt of writing books but never had the time so decided it was finally a good time to start. The first book I published is loosely based on my background. It’s about a little girl who spends her summer holidays in Spain with her family. When she’s there, the children in the Spanish village laugh at the way she talks; they say that Anna speaks differently than them. Her grandma reminds her how lucky she is to be able to speak two languages, Spanish and English, and to have two different cultures.
The first book opened many doors and made me realise there’s a need for a lot more bilingual books. So I came up with the idea of writing the second book based in Mexico as I absolutely love the country and culture. The Mexiglish Girl / La Chica Mexiglish is about a half British and half Mexican girl who visits her family in Mexico during the summer holiday. While she’s there, she learns all about local food, culture and traditions but struggles to remember some Spanish words when put on the spot. Some of her friends make fun of her for not knowing how to hit a piñata but her wise grandmother gives her the confidence to stand up for herself. The book teaches that it’s ok to be different and it’s better to be kind to one another.
I plan on writing many more books in different languages as well as more Spanish speaking countries as I believe every bilingual child will benefit from these stories.
You can find the books here:
The Spanglish Girl / La Chica Espanglish:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08NWVMDQF
The Mexiglish Girl / La Chica Mexiglish:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1739937708
Website:
Find me on Instagram & Facebook under @bilingobooks
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