When most people think of the average worker, they might think of adults and teens as the ones who are employed. However, we’d like to honor another group of workers less visible to the public eye - kids who have jobs well before the age of 15. Some are official, some are less official but kids can work hard, too. Read on to discover our favorite fiction books featuring kids at work.
In the bilingual picture book The Interpreter, Cecilia has two jobs – the first is being a kid, and the second is translating between English and Spanish for her parents. Cecilia enjoys her job as an interpreter and wants to help, but her work is not without sacrifice – it’s never fun to cut soccer practice short or wait at the DMV all day. Cecilia juggles her responsibilities with grace, but she gets tired like everyone else! The illustrations show Cecilia wearing a suit that doesn’t quite fit, but perhaps, like her role as the interpreter, she’ll grow into it.
Front Desk is the first book of six in a critically acclaimed series by Kelly Yang. Mia and her family are recent immigrants to America and live in free lodging at the small motel they manage, but they are still barely making ends meet. At just ten years old, Mia holds the esteemed job of running the front desk - answering phones and helping customers while her mother cleans and launders the motel rooms. She also helps her parents hide newly arrived immigrants within the safety of the motel. Mia has dreams of becoming a writer, and as she learns more about injustice against immigrants in America, she wishes to one day use her writing to help them. With an amazing commitment to true diversity, this series offers a unique view behind the scenes of real working America.
Who Could That Be at This Hour? is the first book in Lemony Snicket's intriguing mystery series All the Wrong Questions. Its main character is a young Lemony Snicket who becomes a kid at work when he begins an apprenticeship for a secret organization. His assignment sends him to an eerie, deserted town called Staind by the Sea, where he meets other working kids like him – a dutiful journalist, a kind-hearted cook, a brilliant chemist. AN=nd of course the young Bellerophon brothers, nicknamed Pip and Squeak, who fill in to run their father’s taxi business while he is ill. Pip steers the wheel seated on a pile of books and Squeak sits on the floor, operating the pedals and reading to his brother while they wait for their next ride. They strongly prefer good books recommendations over monetary tips. Teamwork really does make the dream work!
To all kids with jobs - thank you for your hard work and sacrifice!
Add a comment to: Kids at Work