I Wanna Be Your Shoebox [Audiobook, Unabridged] [Audio CD]

Cristina Garcia (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up

Because Yumi Ruíz-Hirsch has grandparents from Japan, Cuba, and Brooklyn, her mother calls her a poster child for the twenty-first century. Yumi would laugh if only her life wasn’t getting as complicated as her heritage. All of a sudden she’s starting eighth grade with a girl who collects tinfoil and a boy who dresses like a squid. Her mom's found a new boyfriend, and her punk-rock father still can't sell a song. She's losing her house; she’s losing her school orchestra. And worst of all she's losing her grandfather Saul.

Yumi wishes everything could stay the same. But as she listens to Saul tell his story, she learns that nobody ever asks you if you're ready for life to happen. It just happens. The choice is either to sit and watch or to join the dance.

National Book Award finalist Cristina García’s first middle-grade novel celebrates the chaotic, crazy, and completely amazing patchwork that makes up our lives.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6–8—Yumi Ruíz-Hirsch attends a Southern California middle school. She likes to surf; she's a musician, and she's the daughter of a truly contemporary, international family (her mother is Cuban and her father has a Japanese mother and a Jewish dad). Yumi loves her divorced parents, even though she isn't thrilled with the idea of her mom's approaching marriage, and her punk-rocker father isn't all that successful. Additionally, the bright and sensitive eighth grader is learning to cope with the impending loss of her grandfather, who is dying from cancer. She wants to learn everything she can about him while she still has him. Interspersed throughout the book are Saul's stories of his life, which reveal not only his colorful past, but also provide insight into his relationships and resilience. Yumi gleans self-awareness from her grandfather's stories, and their lessons punctuate her reflections. In all, this is a fast, funny, and surprisingly plausible book with likable, slightly off-beat characters who interact and relate genuinely, often movingly.—Maria B. Salvadore, formerly at Washington DC Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Cristina GarcÍa was born in Havana, Cuba, and grew up in New York City. She's written several novels, including the National Book Award finalist Dreaming in Cuban and A Handbook to Luck. Her work frequently explores the nature of identity and the sometimes absurd places it takes us. She published her first picture book, The Dog Who Loved the Moon, in spring 2008. She lives in California with her daughter, Pilar, and a hundred-pound puppy named Rio.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Audio CD
• Publisher: Listening Library (Audio); Unabridged edition (August 12, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0739365150
• ISBN-13: 978-0739365151
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 1.2 x 5.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,720,401 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

NOTE TO READERS: If you'd like your copy of The Lady Matador's Hotel signed and/or dedicated, please message me through my website and I'll let you know where to send the book(s). Book clubs welcome! Return postage on me. Ole!

Cristina García is the author of five novels: Dreaming in Cuban, The Agüero Sisters, Monkey Hunting, A Handbook to Luck, and The Lady Matador's Hotel.
García has edited two anthologies, Cubanísimo: The Vintage Book of Contemporary Cuban Literature and Bordering Fires: The Vintage Book of Contemporary Mexican and Chicano/a Literature. Two works for young readers, The Dog Who Loved the Moon, and I Wanna Be Your Shoebox were published in 2008. A collection of poetry, The Lesser Tragedy of Death, was recently published by Akashic Press. Her new young adult novel, Dreams of Significant Girls, will be published in July 2011.

García's work has been nominated for a National Book Award and translated into a dozen languages. She is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Whiting Writers' Award, a Hodder Fellowship at Princeton University, and an NEA grant, among others. She has taught literature and writing at numerous universities and divides her time between Texas and northern New Mexico. Please visit her website at www.cristinagarcianovelist.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A Strong Message but a Disappointing Read, September 6, 2008

By 

Chris (Montana) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: I Wanna Be Your Shoebox (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

The story is about a young teen girl from a multicultural famiy (Jewish, Japanese and Cuban) dealing with parents, school, death, and the fact that life constantly changes even when we want to cling to the past.

Yumi's parents divorced when she was one. She is close to both parents, and particularly close to her Jewish grandfather who is dying at the age of 92 from cancer.

The book is alternately entertaining and boring. The family dynamic is unique, and the relationship between Yumi and Saul is endearing. And here comes the "but" I didn't feel invested enough in the characters to care about them. Yumi is drawn clearly, but her mother is vaguely defined and the fiancee is a blank canvas with little or no personality. Secondary characters don't need to be as vividly described, but her mother and fiancee are a big part of the story.

Throughout the story, her grandfather, dying of cancer, begins to tell Yumi about his life. What started out interesting became tedious and interferred with the movement of the story.

There was an overall sadness to the entire book, her grandfather dying, her mother moving on and remarrying, her father's depression and having to move away from her old neighborhood. The book was heavy with underlying message and frankly, I think a teen is going to be bored to tears reading it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great story with lots to think about, October 16, 2008

By 

Auskan "Auskan" (KS, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: I Wanna Be Your Shoebox (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

This is a good book for the younger teenager. It deals with lots of different issues from the point of view of a young girl, who doesn't have the benefit of an adult's viewpoint to assist her with handling her problems. A good read for any pre-teen to teen girl.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sweet, September 24, 2008

By 

C. Irish "Read On!" (Placerville, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I Wanna Be Your Shoebox (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

I Wanna Be Your Shoebox was a sweet read. I think it's intended audience will enjoy it very much. From Saul, the dying grandfather, there is much to learn and it's his voice I got the most from in the book. I would have enjoyed this book if it was just his and his wife's story because I found it to be the most interesting part though his Japanese wife speaks only at the end, her character is exemplified in Saul's story.

Saul's knowledge of the depression, World Wars, and past presidents provide interesting history that kids of this age (middle school) are beginning to learn about and he brings them to light in an entertaining first hand tale.

Yumi is struggling with many things. Some plot lines and characters tend to be a little sketchy but it's acceptable and the book flows well. There was some introductory symbolism that will be appreciated.

I am going to recommend my daughter read this book. I think it will be inspiring to her. The colorful ancestry could have been enhanced on the Cuban side, but I think Saul's tale was touching and more complete.

I think this was an entertaining book with just enough interest and action to keep kids reading it. It also had an importance message for kids to 'dance' in their own way.