A young author’s gift to refugees

When Bea Gusso moved from Brazil to Australia at age five, she couldn’t speak the language – and the experience stayed with her. Making a friend who had arrived in Australia on a humanitarian visa also had a lasting impact.

A couple of years later, those early memories inspired Bea and her family to find a special way to support others facing similar challenges: refugees starting over in a new country. She has now written a book called How to Make Friends in Any Language, and proceeds from sales are being donated to UNHCR.  

Finding friendship in any language

On arrival in Sydney, Bea couldn’t speak any English. 

“We taught her just four words – water, food, toilet and mum – so she could start school,” says her mother, Ana Prado. 

Her new school was incredibly welcoming, and Bea quickly began learning English. Two years later, she is the one teaching her parents at home.

But in the first few months, Bea had to find her own way to fit in and make friends without speaking the language.

“It was a bit tricky at first,” says Bea. “While I didn’t know how to speak English properly yet, I used my hands a lot to try and show what I meant.”

Across the road from their home is a playground that Bea and her parents would often visit after school. 

“Bea loved to play there, but even though she visited the playground almost daily, she struggled to connect with other children,” says Ana. 

But slowly and cautiously, she made her first friend. And then another, and another. One night, she mentioned to her family that she had been developing strategies to make friends despite the language barrier.

That’s when Bea decided, “These tips would make a great book!” A unique idea was born.

Bringing Bea’s ideas to the page

Bea's parents fully supported her to create the book her own way. It was a long process; Bea chose all the illustrations and wrote all the tips. There are 10 in total, with fun but sage advice. 

One of her tips is deceptively simple: “Be Friendly! Smile at Kids.” 

“Smiling helped me a lot – it made it easier to get invited to play,” says Bea. 

Another is one many parents can relate to: “Bring Your Adults to the Playground: At the playground, you can make friends and so can the adults who take care of you! Grown-ups don’t play as much as we do, so they don’t make new friends as easily. You can help them by making friends first!”

Other tips include bringing and sharing toys, as well as practicing kindness and having a sense of humour.

Bea was excited to share these tips so that other children around the world can also play and make friends, even without speaking the same language.

“After Bea wrote her book, we decided to hold a small launch party to celebrate this achievement,” says Ana. “We printed several copies and invited friends, the school staff, and members of the community.”

Helping other children

At the launch event, everyone who attended on the day received a free signed copy of the book. In return, the family asked for voluntary donations to an organisation that supports refugees – UNHCR.

“We chose to support refugees because of the theme of the book, which is about making friends even when you speak a different language and are immersed in a different culture," says Ana. “Many refugee children face the same challenges of learning a new language and making friends in a new place.”

Bea was inspired by the experiences of some of her foreign language classmates, including a child from Ukraine who also could not speak English when they arrived in Australia on a humanitarian visa. 

“I’d like to help other kids living in different countries, struggling to make friends in different languages,” adds Bea. “I hope it helps them.”  

The book is available on Amazon, and all proceeds from sales will be donated to UNHCR.

Buy Bea's book