BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
Tia Fortuna used to live in Cuba. She remembers waving to the ships as they came into the harbor. But one day she had to leave and took only a suitcase of photographs and the mezuzah from the door. Now she lives in a little house at the Seaway. She and her niece visit the beach and talk about the sun and the sea, and the importance of some of Tia's most cherished things, and they make some cookies. She has been there for years and years, but it's time to move again, time to pack only a small suitcase.
Behar's author note is essential. Without it, this is just a story about moving an elderly aunt to a retirement home. The note explains why Tia is Jewish and lived in Cuba, why she moved from Cuba to Miami, what her eye bracelet is all about, and why she keeps the key to her house. This is a connection to Behar's Sephardic ancestry. Tia is of Sephardic heritage.
Lisa Librarian
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