“Some kids had one job. To be a kid. Cecilia worked two.” Bilingual (Latine) Cecilia’s second—and more demanding—job is to interpret for her parents, who only speak Spanish. She does so at the doctor’s office, the DMV, the auto repair shop, the hairdresser’s, restaurants, and more. Her second job is running her ragged, and it often keeps her from the thing she’d rather be doing: simply playing with her friends. Finally, at a parent-teacher conference, her teacher asks Cecilia how she is doing. “Cecilia couldn’t take it anymore. She was done being a professional.” Her feelings come pouring out, cascading down the page. “I want to help,” she concludes. “Just not all the time.” After that, her older brother comes home from college to help for a weekend, and her aunt comes over to help with an appointment. Now her family acknowledges the work she does for them and makes sure she has breaks—and plenty of time to be a kid. With much of the dialogue in colored speech bubbles (blue for English, yellow for Spanish), the book’s design is clever but requires a measure of patience to follow. Despite that, this comically written yet deeply felt story is a refreshing validation of the necessary work many bilingual children do for their parents.

A sharp and heartfelt picture book about a young soccer-loving girl who’s an interpreter for her Spanish-speaking parents.

Some kids have one job: to be a kid! Cecilia has two. When she isn't on the soccer field scoring goals, she's accompanying her parents to all kinds of grown-up places, like the DMV, the accountant's office, and the auto shop. She helps them translate from Spanish to English and from English to Spanish. It’s an important job, and it can even be fun. It’s also hard work. 

Sometimes Cecilia's second job is so much responsibility, it feels like she'll split in two! Is it time for Cecilia to blow her whistle and call for a time-out?

Olivia Abtahi’s clever text and Monica Arnaldo’s charming illustrations capture a common aspect of life for immigrant and bilingual families while offering a model for teamwork that helps everyone feel understood.