Key takeaway
The English Big Book in your lap will not stay with you. Alcoholics Anonymous is translated into over 70 languages, and the catalog is full of Spanish editions, including the Spanish Big Book and the Spanish Twelve and Twelve. You can listen while the passage is read. A meeting in your language is a local question.
Last updated: Tue Oct 06 2026 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Everyone else is on the paragraph. You can see the letters. They will not stay. The book in your lap is English, and English on the page is not a language you can follow tonight. You smile when they smile. You turn the page when they turn the page. You are tired of the performance. You came because you want to stop drinking, and the book that is supposed to help is a wall.
Shut it. You can sit here without winning a fight with that copy.
The book traveled, and the catalog has Spanish editions
Alcoholics Anonymous, the Big Book, presents the program. It is still the basic text. It has been translated into over 70 languages. You do not need the name of every language tonight. The number is enough, and a list would not put the right copy in your hands.
What can be said about one language is specific. The 2025 catalog is full of Spanish editions of A.A. books. The Spanish Big Book and the Spanish Twelve and Twelve appear as titles in that catalog. If Spanish is the language you read, you can ask one person whether the group has either of those. Asking is allowed. An answer of no is information about that table, not a ruling that you cannot stop drinking. Groups normally offer books at cost and pamphlets free of charge. The seat is separate from the book. There are no dues or fees for the meeting itself.
Listen while they read
Many meetings read a short passage at the start. You can listen to that reading instead of chasing the English page with your eyes. You can listen to the shares after it. People talk about what drinking did, the actions they took, and how they live now. The purpose is experience, strength, and hope. Some of that may reach you by tone even when the sentences do not. Some of it may not. Listening is still how you stay in the room while the English copy stays shut.
If the language of the meeting is one you do not know at all, the reading will not magically become yours. You can still be in the chair. You can pass the book if it comes to you. Introducing yourself is not mandatory, which matters when the introduction itself would have to be in a language the room is not speaking. You need not join a prayer. Talk afterward is optional. What a Big Book meeting is describes the hour when the book is the topic. A topic from a book you do not own is a near feeling, except your wall is the language of the copy. Where to start in the Twelve and Twelve is for a night you have a copy you can read. The Spanish Twelve and Twelve is one of the catalog titles, if that is the copy.
Audio of the Big Book is on the Big Book page. That fact is about being able to listen. It is not a claim that the recording speaks every language the book has been translated into. Use the recording if it helps. Use the human voice in the room if that is the voice you can follow. Big Book audio when reading fails is the guide for eyes that will not hold a line. Your wall is the language.
A meeting in your language is a local question
You want a room where the shares are in a language you actually speak. That is a fair want. aa.org will not find that meeting for you. It is not a meeting finder. Local A.A. resources have meeting lists, and there is a pointer for online meetings. Read the notes on a listing. A language, if the group wrote one down, will be a local note. Confirm it before you cross town, because lists go stale.
Ask a local office, or read a local list. How to find a meeting is the search. Online meetings exist, including video-off and dial-in, and the language of each one is still something you confirm. The meetings search on this site is not verified here.
The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. You are welcome regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, income, or profession. Bring that with you into a room you only partly understand, and bring it into a room you understand completely when you find one. You can sit and listen or share. An open meeting is for anyone interested, and a nonalcoholic may attend as an observer. If someone comes along who can help you follow, ask whether the meeting is open or closed before you walk in. A closed meeting is for members, or for people with a drinking problem and a desire to stop drinking. Do not assume every closed room will make the same decision about a helper. The question is polite. What to expect still covers the rest of the first-night nerves.
If you are in danger
Lost in a book is miserable. Sick from stopping is an emergency. If you are sick, confused, or cannot breathe, call 911. If you are in a mental health crisis, call or text 988.
NIAAA says alcohol withdrawal can be life-threatening when a person who drinks heavily over time stops suddenly. NIDA describes mutual-help groups such as A.A. as peer-led, not led by healthcare professionals, and not a substitute for treatment. A meeting is peer support, not detox. The right language will not manage withdrawal.
If you need help finding treatment, call (800) 653-9376, and the line is not A.A., and it is not SMART Recovery. The call is free to you. Treatment providers pay for the referral. The line is not an intergroup. SAMHSA's National Helpline, 1-800-662-HELP (4357), is free, confidential, and available all day and night in English and Spanish. That helpline is treatment help. It is not an A.A. meeting line. FindTreatment.gov lists programs.
Tonight
Shut the English copy. Listen to the passage if the room is reading one. Ask one person about a Spanish Big Book or a Spanish Twelve and Twelve if that is the language you read. Then look at a local list, not at aa.org, for a meeting in a language you speak. Start with the meetings search and confirm what you find. You can want to stop drinking in whatever language the want arrives in.
Additional Resources
Sources cited on this page:
- A.A.: The Big Book
- A.A. World Services 2025 literature catalog
- A.A. General Service Office: SMF-29, conference-approved literature
- A.A.: What to Expect at an A.A. Meeting
- A.A.: Need help with a drinking problem?
- A.A.: The Twelve Traditions
- A.A.: Find A.A. Near You
- NIDA: Treatment
- NIAAA: Core resource on alcohol
- SAMHSA: National Helpline
- SAMHSA FindTreatment.gov
- 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
- SmarterRecovery meetings search
- SmarterRecovery about page
Common Questions
Does the Big Book exist in languages other than English?
Yes. Alcoholics Anonymous, the Big Book, is translated into over 70 languages, and it is still the basic text. The catalog is full of Spanish editions of A.A. books. The Spanish Big Book and the Spanish Twelve and Twelve appear as titles there. You can ask one person if the group has a copy. A title in the catalog is not a promise that the copy is on the table. Books at a meeting are normally at cost, and pamphlets are normally free.
What do I do with the English copy in my lap?
You can shut it. You do not have to pretend to follow a page you cannot keep. Many meetings read a short passage at the start, and you can listen to that reading and to the shares after it. Introducing yourself is not mandatory. If the book comes to you, pass it. There are no dues or fees. If you do not know the language of the room, listening will not translate it. You can still stay while you look for a meeting you can follow.
Will aa.org find a meeting in my language?
No. aa.org is not a meeting finder. Whether a meeting is held in a language you speak is a local question. Local A.A. resources have meeting lists, and there is a pointer for online meetings. Read the listing and confirm it, because a note can be old. The meetings search on this site is not verified here. Ask locally. That is the search.
Can I belong if I cannot read the English book?
Yes. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. You are welcome regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, income, or profession. You can sit and listen or share. You need not join a prayer. Talk after the meeting is optional. If you want the essays, the Twelve and Twelve is a separate book, and a Spanish edition appears in the catalog. Where a newcomer opens that book is a different guide. Tonight the English copy can stay closed.
What if I am sick and also lost in the language?
Call 911 if you are sick, confused, or cannot breathe. Call or text 988 if you are in a mental health crisis. Language trouble and withdrawal can be the same night, and withdrawal needs medical care. NIAAA says alcohol withdrawal can be life-threatening when a person who drinks heavily over time stops suddenly. NIDA says mutual-help groups such as A.A. are peer-led, not led by healthcare professionals, and not a substitute for treatment. A meeting is peer support, not detox.