Finding Your Spanglish Stride: A Review of Speak Up, Santiago!

Cover to Julio Anta and Gabi Mendez's Speak Up, Santiago!

Speak Up, Santiago! follows preteen Santigo as he travels to Hillside Valley for the summer to visit his Abuela Emma. Coming from New York City, Santiago is anxious that his Spanish won’t be enough to keep up with his Colombian grandmother and the majority Latinx community she lives in.

As a New York City Mexican with my own insecurities about my less-than-perfect Spanish, I’ve bought into this story before the end of chapter one.

Santiago Struggles with Spanish

Upon arrival at Abuela Emma’s house, Santiago already feels out of his depth. In a fabulous move by Anita and Mendez, parts of the dialogue are crossed out, indicating where Santiago was unable to keep up with the conversation. The omissions not only effectively communicate what it feels like to only understand every few words spoken by the people around you, but it also lets the reader track Santiago’s growing comprehension as he practices his Spanish skills throughout the summer.

Soon, Santiago finds his footing in Hillside Valley. His Spanish improves, and he finds a group of sweet kids to spend time with– Sol, Willie, Alejandro, and Nico– and even joins their soccer team.

However, not all is perfect for Santiago. His self-esteem reaches its lowest point when he overhears his grandmother teasing him to her friends. Though he had already dealt with some criticism of his accent from neighbors and the kids in town, at this point he had felt that his Spanish had improved greatly and felt deeply betrayed. Hearing his grandmother poke fun at his “gringo accent” sends Santiago into a spiral, and he lashes out at both Abuela Emma and his friends, leading to his rejection from the team. Eventually, Abuela Emma apologizes to Santiago, and Santiago to his friends for acting out towards them.

At the end of the summer, Santiago’s parents surprise him at the soccer tournament, and all is well with Abuela Emma and the Hillside Valley kids. Santiago says, “Even though I’m proud of how much my Spanish has improved, what Hillside Valley has really taught me is that none of that actually matters. My family loves me for me. And now that I have my confidence back, I’m pretty happy with who I am too.”

Speak Up, Santiago! offers a refreshing example of healthy relationships and Latino masculinity. Santiago has a supportive and loving family who are there for him. In return, Santiago is sweet to them. A particularly touching moment of the story is when Santiago uses Abuela Emma’s cookbook to make soup for her when she is injured. It’s also notable that Abuela Emma apologizes to Santiago for making fun of him behind his back, as examples like these critically show young readers that their emotions are valid and they deserve apologies from adults, too.

Santiago also has strong, age-appropriate relationships with the other children, who also hold him accountable for his actions. After he begins to play soccer too aggressively, they let him know that he cannot be on their team anymore. Santiago’s aggression is shown to be out of character for him, disrupting notions of Latinos as stereotypically violent and rough. Santiago learns from his mistakes, apologizes to his friends, and is welcomed back to the team. His friendships help him build confidence, and ultimately Santiago realizes what really matters.

Ultimately, Speak Up, Santiago! is a warm story about friendship, self-determination, and disrupting the notion that there is a “right” way to be Latino. I hope this book gets into the hands of as many young readers as possible, and I’m already looking forward to the next book in the series that follows Sol (admittedly, my favorite character)!