Readers might recognize Aida Salazar’s name as the author of award-winning middle grade novels, such as The Moon Within and The Land of the Cranes, and even her most recent Caldecott Honor winner, Jovita Wears Pants, illustrated by Molly Mendoza (2019, 2020, 2023, all Scholastic). But Salazar wears another hat in the children’s publishing sphere. She’s also a translator of books, including Isabel Quintero’s La panza de mamá, the Spanish-language edition of Mama’s Panza (both Penguin, 2024)—both SLJ stars. The picture book by Morris Award–winning Quintero, illustrated by Iliana Galvez, is about a little boy who expresses his appreciation of the comfort of his mother’s belly. It is a tribute to mother’s bodies and all the love and security that can be found there.

Salazar’s journey into translating happened in the most unexpected of ways. During the pandemic, a publisher requested that she translate Peace by Miranda Paul and Paul Baptiste (NorthSouth, 2021), an ode to peace, from English to Spanish. “They asked me to translate this 300-word poem in rhyme, which was a huge, beautiful puzzle and an incredible challenge,” says Salazar.

Source: https://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/webfiles/1721977105379/images/SLJ-Logo.jpg

Full article: https://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/story/aida-salazar-on-the-art-of-translation-truth-and-the-language-of-lyricism-the-2024-stars-issue