I Wanna Be Your Shoebox
by Cristina Garcia

    I WANNA BE YOUR SHOEBOX by Cristina Garcia
    Category:  Contemporary
    Age Recommendation:  Grades 6+
    Release Date:  7/29/08
    Publisher:  Simon & Schuster
    Reviewed by:  JodiG.
    Rating:  5 Stars


    Everybody has one perfect moment in time upon which they will someday look back and think, “that was when
    everything changed."  For Yumi Ruíz-Hirsch, that moment is here.  
       
    Yumi lives in a perfect cross-blend of cultures and ethnicity that make her so identifiable to teenagers today. What is
    there in the world that can’t be tackled by a part-Jewish, part-Cuban, part-Japanese, American girl?  Plenty.
       
    First of all, Yumi has just found out that her grandfather, Saul, is dying of cancer. Yumi is closer to Saul than anyone
    else.  Even at ninety-two years old, she can’t believe that he only has months to live and she asks him to tell her about
    his life.  
       
    While dealing with the threat of losing Saul, Yumi also finds herself facing other changes and challenges in her life.  Her
    school has decided that it can no longer support the orchestra. Yumi and her friends in the orchestra decide to
    organize a concert to raise the money to fund it.  But with no firm leadership or plans, the fundraiser is turning out to be
    a disorganized mess.
       
    Now Yumi’s mom has a new boyfriend and is also planning to move them out of the only home Yumi has ever
    known.  She’ll be further away from the beach, which means further from surfing.
       
    She is also worried about her father, a punk-rock songwriter who has yet to sell a song, and who isn’t exactly close to
    his father, Saul.  
       
    Over the next months, as she listens to the stories of Saul’s life, Yumi learns that change is inevitable and that someday
    you may look back and realize that it was really the start of something wonderful.
       
    I WANNA BE YOUR SHOEBOX is an endearing story that will warm your heart and bring tears to your eyes.