'The Interpreter' is a story about children who act as translators for their parents

NPR's Book of the Day

NPR

Books, Arts

4.2 • 672 Ratings

🗓️ 6 February 2025

⏱️ 12 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Cecilia, the main character in Olivia Abtahi's The Interpreter, wears an oversized green suit and tie. She's a kid, but she also works as a translator and interpreter for her immigrant parents. Whether at the DMV, the doctor's office or the mechanic, she's there to help out with cultural translation. The story, illustrated by Monica Arnaldo, is based on Abtahi's own experience growing up with an Iranian father and an Argentine mother who both spoke English, but sometimes needed support with cultural nuance. In today's episode, Abtahi speaks with Here & Now's Scott Tong about how translation is a full-time, adult job that can place a lot of pressure on young children. They also discuss the filial duty that first-generation kids sometimes feel and the importance of depicting the parents in the book with dignity.

To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Hey, it's Amper's Book of the Day. I'm Andrew Limbong. Growing up, my mom was a nurse in the
0:07.3	ER, and sometimes when she needed to write a report or something, she'd call me and whisper like,
0:13.0	Hey, Andrew, how do you say XYZ and English? And I'd talk her through on what to write, tell her I had
0:19.2	homework to do, and then go back to
0:21.1	playing Crash Bandicoot or something.
0:22.8	That experience of being the voice for your non-English-speaking parents is a pretty
0:28.4	universal one among kids of immigrants.
0:31.0	And it's the plot of the new picture book titled The Interpreter, written by Olivia Abtahi.
0:36.1	She spoke with here and now Scott talking about how kids are filling the role that's
0:40.8	actually a job that grown adults are paid to do and are somehow still doing it while
0:46.7	doing regular kid stuff.
0:48.9	And it can sometimes be too much.
0:51.8	That's coming up.
0:53.5	In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life.
0:58.3	Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind closed doors.
1:02.8	On our new show, Sources and Methods, NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of
1:07.3	real people helping you understand why distant events matter here at home.
1:12.5	Listen to sources and methods on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.
1:17.7	Have you ever been in a restaurant or, you know, waiting at the car dealership, at the doctor's
1:22.3	office, and notice it's not the adults always speaking to the professionals, but instead one of their
1:28.1	children?
1:29.5	Well, the U.S. Census Bureau says about 11 million children in America act as interpreters and
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from NPR, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of NPR and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.