Love in Translation: Letters to My Costa Rican Daughter

When a Phoenix schoolteacher buys a one-way ticket to Costa Rica, she gets pretty much what she hopes for: salvation on a bus, enlightenment in a taxi, and a serendipitous romp of a reporting career. What she doesn’t see coming is a decade-long affair with the country’s sly and hilarious street slang, whose wit and wisdom changes the way she sees life, love, and eventually motherhood. A delight for travel buffs, parents and linguists alike, Katherine Stanley Obando’s ingenious and soulful phrasebook portrays a Costa Rica most tourists never see - and explains how what’s lost in translation helped her find herself.

Praise for Love in Translation

No one who loves Costa Rica should be without this delightful book - but it will also speak to anyone who has ever been far from home, or loved a child, or marveled at the power of language. ‘Love in Translation’ has earned a cherished and permanent spot on my bookshelf and in my heart. -Oscar Arias, Former Costa Rican President and Nobel Peace Laureate

Delicious… Lovingly written, with luminous joy. -Carlos Arauz, author of Costa Rica: leyendas y tradiciones

This is cross culture at its most charming. -Henrietta Boggs, Former Costa Rican First Lady, author of Married to a Legend: Don Pepe

She has taught us a valuable lesson: that our language and culture are rich and worthy of preservation. We must carry it in our souls. The pride of being Costa Rican, just the way we are. -Maria Mayela Padilla, National Culture Award-winning writer and folklorist