Download high-resolution image Look inside
Listen to a clip from the audiobook
audio pause button
0:00
0:00

Tía Fortuna's New Home

A Jewish Cuban Journey

Author Ruth Behar
Illustrated by Devon Holzwarth
Look inside
Listen to a clip from the audiobook
audio pause button
0:00
0:00
Hardcover
$18.99 US
8.88"W x 11.31"H x 0.39"D  
On sale Jan 25, 2022 | 32 Pages | 9780593172414
Preschool - 3
Reading Level: Lexile AD590L | Fountas & Pinnell R
A poignant multicultural ode to family and what it means to create a home as one girl helps her Tía move away from her beloved Miami apartment.

When Estrella's Tía Fortuna has to say goodbye to her longtime Miami apartment building, The Seaway, to move to an assisted living community, Estrella spends the day with her. Tía explains the significance of her most important possessions from both her Cuban and Jewish culture, as they learn to say goodbye together and explore a new beginning for Tía.

A lyrical book about tradition, culture, and togetherness, Tía Fortuna's New Home explores Tía and Estrella's Sephardic Jewish and Cuban heritage. Through Tía's journey, Estrella will learn that as long as you have your family, home is truly where the heart is.
© Gabriel Frye-Behar
Ruth Behar, the Pura Belpré Award–winning author of Lucky Broken Girl, was born in Havana, Cuba, grew up in New York, and has also lived in Spain and Mexico. In addition to writing for young people, her work includes poetry, memoir, and the acclaimed travel books An Island Called Home and Traveling Heavy, which explore her return journeys to Cuba and her search for home. She was the first Latina to win a MacArthur “Genius” Grant, and other honors include a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship, and being named a “Great Immigrant” by the Carnegie Corporation. She is an anthropology professor at the University of Michigan and lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
 
Gabriel Frye-Behar is a Brooklyn-based writer, filmmaker and photographer. He has a BFA in Film & TV Production from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and an MFA in Creative Writing from The New School. He currently teaches in the Drama Department at NYU/Tisch. This is his first picture book and he and his wife can’t wait to share it with their own lovely pepita and bebita. View titles by Ruth Behar
DEVON HOLZWARTH is a picture book illustrator, author and painter. Devon earned her BFA in 2000 from the Rhode Island School of Design focusing on screen printing and painting. She is the author-illustrator of Found You as well as Sophie's Stories, winner of a Society of Illustrators gold medal award. She has illustrated a number of other picture books, including Everywhere With You; The Story of a Book; Papa, Daddy, and Riley; All that is You; A Flicker of Hope; Not Far From Here; and Tia Fortuna's New Home. Devon received a Schneider Family Book Award for her illustration work in Listen: How Evelyn Glennie, a Deaf Girl, Changed Percussion. Devon grew up in Panama surrounded by nature and her dad's art supplies. View titles by Devon Holzwarth

Educator Guide for Tía Fortuna's New Home

Classroom-based guides appropriate for schools and colleges provide pre-reading and classroom activities, discussion questions connected to the curriculum, further reading, and resources.

(Please note: the guide displayed here is the most recently uploaded version; while unlikely, any page citation discrepancies between the guide and book is likely due to pagination differences between a book’s different formats.)

  • RECOMMENDED | 2023
    Sydney Taylor Book Award, Association of Jewish Libraries
NAMED A SYDNEY TAYLOR NOTABLE BOOK

★ "[A] beautiful story about heritage and hope… and remarkable in every way." —School Library Journal, starred review

★ "A nostalgic glimpse at a little-known but rich culture within the broader Jewish American community." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“A beautiful tribute to home, family, and traditions.” —Margarita Engle, Pura Belpré Award–winning and Newbery Honor–winning author

"Overflowing with warmth, hope and poetry, Tía Fortuna's New Home is a beautiful celebration of culture, intergenerational love, and the sanctity of home, both old and new." —Matt de la Pena, Newbery winning author of Last Stop on Market Street
 
“Good fortune to the readers of this wise tale.” —Sandra Cisneros, author of Hairs/Pelitos
 
“A beautiful and heartful reminder that home is not merely where we live, but rather, everything that lives within us.” —Richard Blanco, 2013 Presidential Inaugural Poet, author of How to Love a Country
 
"A radiant gem where the ancient past and future encounter one another with a welcoming hope." —Marjorie Agosin, author of I Lived on Butterfly Hill

About

A poignant multicultural ode to family and what it means to create a home as one girl helps her Tía move away from her beloved Miami apartment.

When Estrella's Tía Fortuna has to say goodbye to her longtime Miami apartment building, The Seaway, to move to an assisted living community, Estrella spends the day with her. Tía explains the significance of her most important possessions from both her Cuban and Jewish culture, as they learn to say goodbye together and explore a new beginning for Tía.

A lyrical book about tradition, culture, and togetherness, Tía Fortuna's New Home explores Tía and Estrella's Sephardic Jewish and Cuban heritage. Through Tía's journey, Estrella will learn that as long as you have your family, home is truly where the heart is.

Author

© Gabriel Frye-Behar
Ruth Behar, the Pura Belpré Award–winning author of Lucky Broken Girl, was born in Havana, Cuba, grew up in New York, and has also lived in Spain and Mexico. In addition to writing for young people, her work includes poetry, memoir, and the acclaimed travel books An Island Called Home and Traveling Heavy, which explore her return journeys to Cuba and her search for home. She was the first Latina to win a MacArthur “Genius” Grant, and other honors include a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship, and being named a “Great Immigrant” by the Carnegie Corporation. She is an anthropology professor at the University of Michigan and lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
 
Gabriel Frye-Behar is a Brooklyn-based writer, filmmaker and photographer. He has a BFA in Film & TV Production from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and an MFA in Creative Writing from The New School. He currently teaches in the Drama Department at NYU/Tisch. This is his first picture book and he and his wife can’t wait to share it with their own lovely pepita and bebita. View titles by Ruth Behar
DEVON HOLZWARTH is a picture book illustrator, author and painter. Devon earned her BFA in 2000 from the Rhode Island School of Design focusing on screen printing and painting. She is the author-illustrator of Found You as well as Sophie's Stories, winner of a Society of Illustrators gold medal award. She has illustrated a number of other picture books, including Everywhere With You; The Story of a Book; Papa, Daddy, and Riley; All that is You; A Flicker of Hope; Not Far From Here; and Tia Fortuna's New Home. Devon received a Schneider Family Book Award for her illustration work in Listen: How Evelyn Glennie, a Deaf Girl, Changed Percussion. Devon grew up in Panama surrounded by nature and her dad's art supplies. View titles by Devon Holzwarth

Guides

Educator Guide for Tía Fortuna's New Home

Classroom-based guides appropriate for schools and colleges provide pre-reading and classroom activities, discussion questions connected to the curriculum, further reading, and resources.

(Please note: the guide displayed here is the most recently uploaded version; while unlikely, any page citation discrepancies between the guide and book is likely due to pagination differences between a book’s different formats.)

Awards

  • RECOMMENDED | 2023
    Sydney Taylor Book Award, Association of Jewish Libraries

Praise

NAMED A SYDNEY TAYLOR NOTABLE BOOK

★ "[A] beautiful story about heritage and hope… and remarkable in every way." —School Library Journal, starred review

★ "A nostalgic glimpse at a little-known but rich culture within the broader Jewish American community." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“A beautiful tribute to home, family, and traditions.” —Margarita Engle, Pura Belpré Award–winning and Newbery Honor–winning author

"Overflowing with warmth, hope and poetry, Tía Fortuna's New Home is a beautiful celebration of culture, intergenerational love, and the sanctity of home, both old and new." —Matt de la Pena, Newbery winning author of Last Stop on Market Street
 
“Good fortune to the readers of this wise tale.” —Sandra Cisneros, author of Hairs/Pelitos
 
“A beautiful and heartful reminder that home is not merely where we live, but rather, everything that lives within us.” —Richard Blanco, 2013 Presidential Inaugural Poet, author of How to Love a Country
 
"A radiant gem where the ancient past and future encounter one another with a welcoming hope." —Marjorie Agosin, author of I Lived on Butterfly Hill

Books for Latinx & Hispanic Heritage Month

Penguin Random House Education is proud to celebrate Latinx & Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs annually from September 15th through October 15th. We are highlighting the works of our authors and illustrators from the Latinx and Hispanic community, whose stories and characters have a profound impact on our society. Here is a selection of titles

Read more

Reading with Purpose Summit Event

On Monday, June 10th, Penguin Random House Education and DK Learning co-hosted a Reading with Purpose Summit Event in collaboration with Molly Ness, PhD. The event took place at Penguin Random House’s NYC headquarters and included sessions featuring leading education experts and a lunchtime author panel. The in-person professional learning event was built to show

Read more

2024 Elementary School Collection

The Penguin Random House Education Elementary School Collection features outstanding fiction, nonfiction, and picture books from Penguin Young Reader’s, Random House Children’s, DK, and Grupo Editorial, as well as children’s publishers distributed by Penguin Random House. Explore online or download this valuable resource to discover great books in specific topic areas such as: Leveled Readers,

Read more

DK Learning Phonic Books Sampler Request

Thank you for your interest in DK Learning | Phonic Books. To download the DK Learning | Phonic Books sampler with four complete readers, please click here and complete the form. Once your information is successfully submitted, a link to download the sampler will be provided on the confirmation screen.   Click here to learn

Read more

PRH Education Translanguaging Collections

Translanguaging is a communicative practice of bilinguals and multilinguals, that is, it is a practice whereby bilinguals and multilinguals use their entire linguistic repertoire to communicate and make meaning (García, 2009; García, Ibarra Johnson, & Seltzer, 2017)   It is through that lens that we have partnered with teacher educators and bilingual education experts, Drs.

Read more

Congratulations to our 2023 ALA Award Winners & Honorees

The American Library Association (ALA) announced their 2023 literary award winners and honorees during LibLearnX: The Library Learning Experience. Below you can find a selection of Penguin Random House titles that were among the winners.   Explore the collection of award winners and honorees here.   Caldecott Medal Winner Hot Dog   Coretta Scott King

Read more