Making an “Obra Maestra” That Matters

Nydia Armendia-Sánchez ’02 grew up without seeing herself or her Latiné culture reflected in children’s books. Where was the casual blending of English and Spanish? Where were the different shades of brown skin? Where were the stories of first-, second-, and third-generation Latiné immigrant families? She refused to let her own kids grow up with the same absence.

“Not many children’s books incorporated Spanish in the way that my family speaks it at home,” said Armendia-Sánchez. “When I was at Pitzer, it was called code switching. Now it’s called translanguaging. It’s when you use two languages side by side within the same sentence or conversation.”

Armendia-Sánchez’s multilingual experience inspired her debut book, Not Far From Here, which she published last fall with Candlewick Press. The National Council for the Social Studies and the Children’s Book Council awarded Armendia-Sánchez with the 2025 Notable Social Studies Trade Book Award for her work.

The official book description is an apt example of Spanglish translanguaging in action:

“Mamá tells her children a story that began when their papá was a niño, not far from here. Their abuelitas told stories of their antepasados, and their abuelo, a blacksmith, taught their papá how to make art from earth and fire. When abuelo died, papá took all those lessons to heart and crossed la frontera to el norte to follow his sueños. There, he worked and overcame barriers, known to many immigrants alike, to forge his own obra maestra: a familia and a future in which anything is possible.”

When Armendia-Sánchez was a child, growing up in Ontario, Calif., she was discouraged from mixing and matching languages.

“Back then, there was this idea you’re ruining the Spanish language by weaving in English,” she said.

She wanted to illustrate speaking multiple languages as a strength—both in her household and in her writing.

“Today, there’s a lot of emphasis on the power of the bilingual brain,” said Armendia-Sánchez. “However your linguistic journey manifests itself is okay. You’re not ruined. There is value in commanding both languages.”

Honoring heritage, family, and perseverance

Armendia-Sánchez majored in Spanish at Pitzer, which she said cemented her fluency in the language and her connection to her heritage. These aspects of her identity influence her to this day as an author.

Armendia-Sánchez published her second picture book this spring with Abrams Young Readers. Frida Kahlo’s Flower Crown explores the famous artist’s life through the language of flowers. The book includes an illustrated guide for the flowers and plants and instructions on how to make a flower crown. Armendia-Sánchez also translated the book to Spanish (her first professional translation) and is releasing it in September.

Meanwhile, Armendia-Sánchez has two more books coming out in spring 2026 and spring 2027: My Huipil with Candlewick Press and Vroom, Vroom, Vámonos: From School Bus to Chicken Bus with Scholastic.

Armendia-Sánchez had never imagined being a children’s author. After graduating from Pitzer, she worked in several different jobs—from bridal consultant to admissions rep to selling handcrafted spices. She was still soul-searching when she started raising her family.

“Right before my 40th birthday, I was in a bookstore, and I read a picture book called Maybe by Kobi Yamada,” said Armendia-Sánchez. “It made me cry right there in the store because it was a story about discovering your potential.”

To explore her own potential, Armendia-Sánchez signed up for classes about children’s publishing. Wanting her kids to see themselves in books reignited a creative spark that she thought she’d lost.

“A lot of times, you think ‘I’m a parent, and that’s it,’” said Armendia-Sánchez. “But because I became a parent, it was in fact my children who motivated me to start creating and find this new path.”

Armendia-Sánchez found her first success in receiving an award via the Sustainable Arts Foundation (SAF), which provided unrestricted grants to parents who are creators. After numerous submissions and rejections, Armendia-Sánchez landed a literary agent and eventually published two of the three stories she’d submitted in her SAF grant.

The journey has required perseverance. Competition is fierce in the picture book market, perhaps more so because many people assume those books are easier to write. Armendia-Sánchez pointed out that a children’s book must condense major themes and narratives to 350 words or less. Even after her book projects were picked up, Armendia-Sánchez had to undergo many revisions with her editor to refine her work.

Despite the publishing world’s challenges, Armendia-Sánchez has found fulfillment as a writer and as a mother.

“I’m going to be 45, and a lot of times I wish I had discovered the possibility of being an author when I was 25,” said Armendia-Sánchez. “Then again, I couldn’t have written my debut book at 25 because it was my family’s story. All my experiences have brought me to this place and time.”