Bilingual children’s book, Lala, a different kind of lizard / Lala, una lagartija diferente, is a story about understanding and accepting our differences, a story about friendship, and the importance of family support. While interviewing author Susana Illera Martinez, I realized that Lala’s story is her story. Immigrating from Colombia via Ecuador, then to the United States, this Latina mom has lived a multicultural life which, at times, made her feel as different as Lala: a new country, new customs, new traditions, even a new language. And though Lala’s differences had more to do with the everyday family acceptance, the emotional experiences might have been quite similar.
Born in Cali, Colombia, Susana was raised in Ecuador before coming to the US. Creative, talented and warm, Susana has been a writer and artistic since a young age. Today, she’s a graphic designer in addition to an award-winning author. Her first book, Clara, cuentos y poemas was published in 2018. Lala, a different kind of lizard was published a year ago in 2019.
Susana is an advocate of Spanish and bilingual children’s literature and is excited to share more Lala’s stories with the world. Her next book Lala and the Pond by The Rock / Lala y el Charco de la Piedra is coming out in a couple of weeks.
Tips to promote culture all year round:
- Instill the love of culture via play and fun activities.
- Use your child’s interests as a cue for language/culture learning. Perhaps he/she like comic books, or sports, art, use that for reading and find cultural activities in those areas!
- Be a good example! Perhaps they see you watching a series with Spanish subtitles?
- Favorite movies or series? Watch as a family in Spanish
- Update your family library with books from authors from your country, Spanish and bilingual books.
