The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora by Pablo Cartaya
The Hook:
Arturo is part of a big family of aunts, uncles, and cousins led by the matriarch of the family Abuela. Abuela and Abuelo (now deceased) started a restaurant many years ago and they have built it into something that is extremely popular in the community and in the Miami food scene. But Abuela’s health is failing, and she has turned over the business to her family. All of his family works there. His mom is the chef, aunts and uncles assist her in the cooking, and the cousins seat and wait on the customers.
Arturo is looking forward to the summer filled with friends and working at the restaurant especially when a family friend comes for a visit, Carmen, who Arturo has a crush on. He ends up telling her he likes her—like likes her likes her.
But then a real-estate tycoon, Wilfrido Pipo, comes to town and wants to build a big fancy high-rise right next to the restaurant. Mr. Pipo realizes Arturo’s family rents the land the restaurant sits on, and he is threatening to kick them off and buy it all so he can expand his high-rise. What is even more troubling, is Mr. Pipo woos some of the community board members to his side telling them how beneficial the high-rise will be for the neighborhood.
It is now up to the Community Board to decide the fate of Arturo’s family restaurant. Arturo is hoping that the neighborhood’s love for his Abuela and the fabulous food and hospitality their restaurant is famous for will keep the restaurant in business. Will they go with the big city high-rise (which honestly, no one will be able to afford to go there) or will they vote to keep the restaurant? You will have to read the book to find out.
This book is in our library. It is also in Sora and Axis 360 as an eBook and an audio book. It is 7 AR points.
My Thoughts and Recommendations (Careful! There Could Be Spoilers):
I enjoyed this book immensely. I loved the dynamics of Arturo’s family. Sometimes they got on each other’s nerves (like all families do), but when push came to shove, they all loved each other and worked together to fight for their family business and against gentrification in the neighborhood.
Abuela always spoke in Spanish and sometimes I, not a Spanish speaker, wished I knew exactly what she was saying but there were enough context clues to figure it out. I also loved the back story of love between Abuela and Abuelo and the how the Cuban poet and revolutionary hero Jose Marti played a role in bringing them together. Carmen, Arturo’s crush, is reading a book of poems by Jose Marti and Carmen along with Abuela, encourages Arturo to read his poems also. This leads to the connection between the love story of Abuela and Abuelo and the crush between Arturo and Carmen. You will root for Arturo as he awkwardly stumbles yet succeeds, helping his family with the family business and winning over the girl. A great coming of age book that is funny and authentic. 4. 6 stars.
