Authors: Bettina Restrepo
Illegal (15 page)
abuela
âgrandmother
aspirina y aceite
âaspirin and oil
baño
âbathroom
Banco de Nada
âBank of Nothing
Bollios,
ten
para un
dollarâHard rolls, ten for a dollar
Buen provecho
âHave a good meal
cabrito
âbaby goat
calma
âbe calm
Calmate, calmate.
âYou calm down, you.
cartas
âdeck of cards
Cazar de Apestar
âstink candle
Cazar de Espectro
âspirit candle
cerrado
âclosed
¿Chica? ¿Donde está su Mama?
âGirl? Where is your mother?
chimenea
âchimney
chupacabra
âthe boogeyman
¿Cómo estas?
âHow are you?
coyote
âhuman smuggler (slang)
cucarachas
âcockroaches
¿cuanto?
âhow much?
decisiónes
âdecisions
despacio
âslowly
Dios
âGod
¡Dios Santo!
âDear God!
dos minutos
âtwo minutes
Ella es mi amiga.
âShe is my friend.
elotes
âcorncobs
Eres majadero.
âYou're annoying.
escuela
âschool
¡Estaba tratando de matarnos!
âIt was trying to kill us!
Fabuloso
âa heavily scented cleanser popular throughout Latin America
familia
âfamily
frÃoâ
cold
fuerte
âstrong
fútbol
âsoccer ball
galleta
âcookie
gordita
âfat lady (slang)
ha muerto
âdied
¿Hambre?
âHungry?
Hola, mami.
âHey, sweet lady.
huaraches
âsandals
Iglesia de Guadalupe
âChurch of Guadalupe, the patron saint of Mexico
jabón
âsoap
jefeâ
boss
la iglesia
âchurch
la luz
âlight
la migra
âimmigration (slang)
la voz
âvoice
ladillas
âan STD similar to gonorrhea (slang)
lechita
âmilk (slang)
Lo siento.
âI'm sorry.
los lentes
âeyeglasses
mañana
âtomorrow
magdalenas
âa Mexican pastry
mas pesos
âmore money, more pesos
mensajes
âmessages
mentiroso
âliar
mija
âContraction of
mi hija
; “my daughter” (slang). Also used as an endearment.
morenos
âblack people (slang)
mota
âmarijuana (slang)
los Negros
âAfrican-Americans
¿Niña, tienes servilletas?
âGirl, do you have napkins?
¡Niños! ¡Cuidado!
âBe careful, kids.
No entiendo.
âI don't understand.
No hablo Inglés
.âI don't speak English.
no mas
âno more
no mas dinero
âno more money
no para
âdon't give
No problema.
âNo problem.
Nos estamos yendo
.âWe're leaving.
para siempre
âforever
pueblo
âtiny town
Qué onda guero
âa reference to a song by Beck, meaning “What's up, dude?” (slang)
¿Qué más?
âWhat else?
¿Quieres algo?
âWould you like something?
¡Que terrible!
âHow terrible!
quince
âa small tiara worn in the hair
quinceañera
âthe fifteenth birthday and celebration; a rite of passage
rumba
âdancing party, not necessarily the specific dance
sangre
âblood
taquerÃa
âsmall restaurant
Te amo.
âI love you.
Tejano
âTexan and Mexican fusion music
tetas
âbreasts (slang)
tÃa
âaunt
Tiene misencordia.
âHave mercy.
tipo de cambio
âexchange rates
torta
âsandwich
Un minuto, por favor.
âJust a minute, please.
Vámanos. No es importante. No hoy
.âLet's go. It's not important. Not today.
velas malolientes
âstinky, smelly candles
via
âthe way
washaterÃaâ
a Laundromat
I am grateful and blessed to have found my agent, Blair Hewes. Thank you for loving Nora and always standing in my corner.
Thank you to my editor, Katherine Tegen, for taking a chance on me and making this process so easy after eight years of no. And to Jennifer Christie, your detailed attention helped every nook and cranny shine. Thank you to the countless and nameless people who will touch, support, and love this book at HarperCollins.
It's not really fair that only my name goes on this book, because I have been nurtured in so many ways. Thank you to Julie, Sally, and Risaâyou made Dallas home. Thank you to Jenny, Mary Ann, and Joyceâyou made creative Sunday afternoons over tea and cookies at the yellow house magical. My promise to you is that you never have to read this book again.
Thank you to Thaddeus Bauer for the letter that saved this novelâotherwise it might be in the trash.
Shout-outs to the organizations that have let me hang out by the watercooler: The Blueboarders, SCBWI, the Elevensies, and 2KII.
To all my friends from JLP and The Next Chapter who always ask, “When is that book coming out?”
And to the employees, families, and customers of Fiesta Martâthank you for sharing your lives and stories. I am humbled.
Last, but not least, my husband, Tom, and my son, Allen. You keep me centered in my insanity and always ask, “What's for dinner?”
Bettina Restrepo
received a BS from the University of Texas at Austin and is the author of a picture book,
MOOSE AND MAGPIE
. She worked as an internal auditor in the Hispanic supermarket Fiesta Mart, which is portrayed in this book. There she examined firsthand the challenges in the nuances of life for illegal immigrants. Bettina lives with her family in Frisco, Texas, and is the daughter of Colombian and German immigrants. You can visit Bettina online at www.bettinarestrepo.com.
Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins author.
Jacket art © 2011 by Jonathan Barkat
Jacket design by Joel Tippie
Katherine Tegen Books is an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.
ILLEGAL
. Copyright © 2011 by Bettina Restrepo. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Restrepo, Bettina.
Illegal / Bettina Restrepo.â1st ed.
p. cm.
Summary: Nora, a fifteen-year-old Mexican girl, faces the challenges of being an illegal immigrant in Texas when she and her mother cross the border in search of Nora's father.
ISBN 978-0-06-195342-2
[1. Illegal aliensâFiction. 2. MexicansâTexasâFiction. 3. TexasâFiction.] I. Title.
PZ7.R3245Il   2011         2010019451
[Fic]âdc22 Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â CIP
                                          AC
FIRST EDITION
EPub Edition © February 2011 ISBN: 978-0-06-206978-8
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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