Unique Dual-Language Children's Books Help Bilingual Families Share Their Heritage

As the ethnic population in the US soars, Language Lizard LLC makes it easier for parents and grandparents to share their native languages and heritage with young children. Language Lizard offers hundreds of award-winning bilingual children's books and CDs in over 40 languages.

Language Lizard's products support not only the growing Spanish-speaking population, but also ethnic populations from all over the world. The dual-language books are available in English with Albanian, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Farsi, French, Gujarati, Korean, Panjabi, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Somali, Turkish, Urdu, Vietnamese or many other languages.

"These books represent the best bilingual children's literature available," says Language Lizard President and Founder, Anneke Forzani, who researched the bilingual book market for several years before establishing the company. The products have won awards for both their stories and illustrations.

The books include world folk tales and fables, myths and legends, faith stories and contemporary stories that teach about other traditions and respecting diversity. There are also board books for infants and young toddlers. Many of the stories come with audio CDs in eleven languages.

According to the US Census Bureau, in the year 2000, about 47 million people spoke a language other than English in their home, up from 32 million in 1990. Close to 20% of all US births are to foreign-born mothers, and the number of native-born Americans with close ties to another country is expected to continue to grow over the next few decades. In fact, by the end of the 21 st century, minorities are expected to represent more than half the total population.

"The demographic changes in our country, combined with growing globalization, point to the importance of introducing children to other cultures and languages at an early age", Forzani says. "These books help children appreciate the diversity in their communities and the world."

Language Lizard LLC's bilingual books range in price from $7.95 to $17.95. They can be ordered at www.LanguageLizard.com or by calling toll-free 1-888-LLIZARD. Readers are invited to sign up online for the company's free e-newsletter, which provides helpful information for parents and teachers who are trying to raise bilingual and multicultural children.