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Garbage Bag Suitcase: A Memoir
★★★★★ "Must read for carers of children!" - Barbara Campbell
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Shenandoah Chefalo is on a wholly dysfunctional journey through a childhood with neglectful, drug-and alcohol addicted parents.
She endures numerous moves in the middle of the night with just minutes to pack, multiple changes in schools, hunger, cruelty, and loneliness.
Finally at the age of 13, Shen had had enough. After being abandoned by her mother for months at her grandmother’s retirement community, she asks to be put into foster care.
Surely she would fare better at a stable home than living with her mother?
It turns out that it was not the storybook ending she had hoped for. When a car accident lands her in the hospital with grave injuries and no one comes to visit her during her three-week stay, she realizes she is truly all alone in the world.
Overcoming many adversities, Shen became part of the 3% of all foster care children who get into college, and the 1% who graduate.
Despite her numerous achievements in life though, she still suffers from the long-term effects of neglect, and the coping skills that she adapted in her childhood are not always productive in her adult life.
Garbage Bag Suitcase is not only the inspiring and hair-raising story of one woman’s journey to over- come her desolate childhood, but it also presents grass-root solutions on how to revamp the broken foster care system.
___
MIDWEST BOOK AWARD-WINNER
INDEPENDENT BOOK PUBLISHER AWARD-WINNER
READERS FAVORITE BOOK AWARD-WINNER
PINNACLE BOOK ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS-WINNER
BEVERLY HILLS BOOK AWARD-WINNER
Shenandoah Chefalo is on a wholly dysfunctional journey through a childhood with neglectful, drug-and alcohol addicted parents.
She endures numerous moves in the middle of the night with just minutes to pack, multiple changes in schools, hunger, cruelty, and loneliness.
Finally at the age of 13, Shen had had enough. After being abandoned by her mother for months at her grandmother’s retirement community, she asks to be put into foster care.
Surely she would fare better at a stable home than living with her mother?
It turns out that it was not the storybook ending she had hoped for. When a car accident lands her in the hospital with grave injuries and no one comes to visit her during her three-week stay, she realizes she is truly all alone in the world.
Overcoming many adversities, Shen became part of the 3% of all foster care children who get into college, and the 1% who graduate.
Despite her numerous achievements in life though, she still suffers from the long-term effects of neglect, and the coping skills that she adapted in her childhood are not always productive in her adult life.
Garbage Bag Suitcase is not only the inspiring and hair-raising story of one woman’s journey to over- come her desolate childhood, but it also presents grass-root solutions on how to revamp the broken foster care system.
196 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2016
184 people are currently reading
2172 people want to read
About the author
Shenandoah Chefalo
6 books73 followersShenandoah Chefalo is a sought-after speaker, award-winning author, and expert trauma-informed specialist with over 20 years of leadership consulting experience. As the Founder and Lead Strategist of Chefalo Consulting, she provides trauma-informed professional development programs. She leads multi-year systems change projects across various sectors, including health care, human services, education, and nonprofits.
Shenandoah Chefalo's acclaimed 2016 memoir Garbage Bag Suitcase chronicles her challenging youth and healing journey, which has had a significant impact on the foster care system. Her unique perspective, rooted in her lived experience in the system, has led her to advocate for grassroots solutions to the United States' broken foster care system.
Shenandoah Chefalo's debut children's book, The Best Bunny: Adventures of Lil Shen and Her Inspirational Sidekick Bunny Best, is set to release on July 22, 2025. This heartwarming tale draws inspiration from her own experiences, aiming to inspire resilience and hope in young readers. It's a perfect example of how her personal journey has influenced her professional work.
In addition to her writing, Shenandoah is a graduate of Michigan State University, holding a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies with a focus on Social Science. She has a Core Essentials Certificate from Coach U and a DEI in the Workplace Certificate from the University of South Florida. She is also a Certified Law of Attraction Advanced Practitioner and a member of the National Speakers Association. Beyond her professional endeavors, she volunteers with several organizations locally, nationally, and internationally.
Shenandoah Chefalo's acclaimed 2016 memoir Garbage Bag Suitcase chronicles her challenging youth and healing journey, which has had a significant impact on the foster care system. Her unique perspective, rooted in her lived experience in the system, has led her to advocate for grassroots solutions to the United States' broken foster care system.
Shenandoah Chefalo's debut children's book, The Best Bunny: Adventures of Lil Shen and Her Inspirational Sidekick Bunny Best, is set to release on July 22, 2025. This heartwarming tale draws inspiration from her own experiences, aiming to inspire resilience and hope in young readers. It's a perfect example of how her personal journey has influenced her professional work.
In addition to her writing, Shenandoah is a graduate of Michigan State University, holding a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies with a focus on Social Science. She has a Core Essentials Certificate from Coach U and a DEI in the Workplace Certificate from the University of South Florida. She is also a Certified Law of Attraction Advanced Practitioner and a member of the National Speakers Association. Beyond her professional endeavors, she volunteers with several organizations locally, nationally, and internationally.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 87 reviews
March 11, 2016
It took me less than 1 day to read this remarkably written memoir, not because it’s what I would consider an “easy read” but because I was captivated to the point of not being able to put the book down.
Written by Shenandoah Chefalo, Garbage bag Suitcase offers a personal look into the life of one child – one small girl who faced abuse and neglect in her daily life – a life that was worth saving even though no one was there to step in and be a savior. In her memoir, Chefalo describes the intense trauma she suffered at the hands of those ordered to care for her by the people that she was supposed to love and trust most in this world.
And after living in chaos and instability for 13 years, transferring her few belongings from place to place in a garbage bag that came to be known as her suitcase, she found the immense courage to make a choice – instead of remaining under the parental umbrella of addiction, abuse, and mental illness, Chefalo chose herself.
Sadly, making life-altering choices usually come with a consequence or two. And in Chefalo’s case, she wound up in the foster care system. Lost and struggling with her identity, she writes of facing each new school, each new home with an underlying drive to make a way through her struggles, to become one of the 3% of foster children to go to college, and one of the 1% to graduate.
In her memoir, Chefalo relays even more staggering statistics about the foster care system. She shares the mental and physical complexities that are common among children who have aged out of their foster homes with nowhere to go, no one to turn to as support. She reflects on her own struggles with lying , food, and relationship – how they weren’t just behaviors that needed to be “fixed” as our society proclaims, but how they were a way to stay alive and a way to reinvent herself, especially since her family and a broken system left her wondering who she even was.
The inside glimpses she vulnerably shares in Garbage Bag Suitcase challenged me to look at my own children through a different lens. To understand the helplessness and fear that can still grip a child that has been through such trauma, who has been taken away from all that they’d known, as dysfunctional as it was, and placed with strangers – to see how one can walk away from the wreckage of it all and to make yet another choice, one of forgiveness… well, there aren’t words to describe the miracle of it all.
In the second section of her book, Chefalo tackles her ideas of how to reform our current foster care system, changing it in ways that promise hope and success for many more children than the current statistics show. Personally, I have always felt that vigorous and constant early intervention services would be the best preventative measure for keeping children out of foster care, helping parents learn to parent in their own homes, bridging that gap and averting the formative years from being overlooked in our young children. Because, once a child gets to school, even if a teacher or administrator notice that something just “isn’t right” with a child, will they report it? Will anything be done? Will the child just be taken and traumatized further? Instead, Chefalo offers brilliant suggestions that are currently being tested and used in our country, offering children a better chance at life.
And if one child is able to make the choice for themselves, and the choice for forgiveness, then this little girl’s story, with her garbage bag suitcase, will not have been in vain.
Written by Shenandoah Chefalo, Garbage bag Suitcase offers a personal look into the life of one child – one small girl who faced abuse and neglect in her daily life – a life that was worth saving even though no one was there to step in and be a savior. In her memoir, Chefalo describes the intense trauma she suffered at the hands of those ordered to care for her by the people that she was supposed to love and trust most in this world.
And after living in chaos and instability for 13 years, transferring her few belongings from place to place in a garbage bag that came to be known as her suitcase, she found the immense courage to make a choice – instead of remaining under the parental umbrella of addiction, abuse, and mental illness, Chefalo chose herself.
Sadly, making life-altering choices usually come with a consequence or two. And in Chefalo’s case, she wound up in the foster care system. Lost and struggling with her identity, she writes of facing each new school, each new home with an underlying drive to make a way through her struggles, to become one of the 3% of foster children to go to college, and one of the 1% to graduate.
In her memoir, Chefalo relays even more staggering statistics about the foster care system. She shares the mental and physical complexities that are common among children who have aged out of their foster homes with nowhere to go, no one to turn to as support. She reflects on her own struggles with lying , food, and relationship – how they weren’t just behaviors that needed to be “fixed” as our society proclaims, but how they were a way to stay alive and a way to reinvent herself, especially since her family and a broken system left her wondering who she even was.
The inside glimpses she vulnerably shares in Garbage Bag Suitcase challenged me to look at my own children through a different lens. To understand the helplessness and fear that can still grip a child that has been through such trauma, who has been taken away from all that they’d known, as dysfunctional as it was, and placed with strangers – to see how one can walk away from the wreckage of it all and to make yet another choice, one of forgiveness… well, there aren’t words to describe the miracle of it all.
In the second section of her book, Chefalo tackles her ideas of how to reform our current foster care system, changing it in ways that promise hope and success for many more children than the current statistics show. Personally, I have always felt that vigorous and constant early intervention services would be the best preventative measure for keeping children out of foster care, helping parents learn to parent in their own homes, bridging that gap and averting the formative years from being overlooked in our young children. Because, once a child gets to school, even if a teacher or administrator notice that something just “isn’t right” with a child, will they report it? Will anything be done? Will the child just be taken and traumatized further? Instead, Chefalo offers brilliant suggestions that are currently being tested and used in our country, offering children a better chance at life.
And if one child is able to make the choice for themselves, and the choice for forgiveness, then this little girl’s story, with her garbage bag suitcase, will not have been in vain.
March 21, 2022
Shenandoah Chefalo’s “Garbage Bag Suitcase: A Memoir,” was a refreshing look into the foster care system. Compared to other related memoirs I’ve read, this one offers proposed solutions as to what could be done to help this broken system.
The first half of the book details Chefalo’s abusive living situation and the book ends with the proposed solutions.
It’s so sad to me that we not only have a broken system, but that some of the foster families that take these children in are also in their own way abusive. And most end up being places in a similar situation that they were in with their families, but now they’re experiencing it at the hands of a stranger.
If you’ve read this book, what are your thoughts regarding the author’s two proposed solutions in fixing this broken system?
The first half of the book details Chefalo’s abusive living situation and the book ends with the proposed solutions.
It’s so sad to me that we not only have a broken system, but that some of the foster families that take these children in are also in their own way abusive. And most end up being places in a similar situation that they were in with their families, but now they’re experiencing it at the hands of a stranger.
If you’ve read this book, what are your thoughts regarding the author’s two proposed solutions in fixing this broken system?
May 19, 2016
I was only supposed to read and review the first couple of chapters of Garbage Bag Suitcase. Once I began reading the book, I couldn’t put it down.
Quote - "…the general process of foster care. I suddenly came face-to-face with the truth in a way I never had. Without much work, I soon discovered that less than 1% of foster children receive a four-year degree, and that out of the nearly 1.6 million people incarcerated in the various correctional institutions nationwide, 1.3 million had been in the foster care system, or 80%. I knew that the system wasn’t great and I knew that I had struggled, but I had never taken the time to understand how bad it was. Over 400,000 children in foster care are affected every year and the number is growing."
Despite all of the odds stacked against her, Shenandoah not only graduated high school but went on to complete college. Garbage Bag Suitcase will break your heart. It is her story, told truthfully and without pretense. What the story reveals is just how broken our society is and how we are not only neglecting our country’s children but helping, by ignoring the problem, to raise broken adults.
Once foster children age out of care, they are left alone to fend for themselves. No home, nowhere to go except the streets, and eventually more often than not, into the criminal justice system.
Ridicule and lack of support continue to haunt foster children long into adulthood if it ever goes away. They struggle with little to no self-esteem and lack of acceptance. They struggle with forgiveness – of themselves and of the system. So many foster children suffer from food issues, having never had enough growing up. They learn to give, but not receive. Foster children learn to blend into their surroundings, not wanting to admit to being in foster care.
Children in foster care are more likely to suffer from PTSD. Some are never diagnosed and others are given psychotropic medications. Shenandoah spouts off alarming statistics that should shake America to its core.
There are staggering statistics that need to be addressed. A mere 61% of foster children age out of care without a place to live, becoming homeless. Less than 50% of foster children complete high school or obtain a G.E.D. Out of these, less than 3% attend college and of the 3%, only 1% are expected to finish their degree.
Garbage Bag Suitcase is the story of Shenandoah Chefalo, a child who grew up in an abusive home and went into foster care hoping for a better life. Life isn’t always fair, yet she not only survived foster care but graduated from college. She beat the odds. Now, she is out to open America’s eyes on the child foster care system. I am giving this book five stars. It is a must read for everyone. Children are our future and we do not have the luxury of dumping this problem into someone else’s lap.
I will end with one more quote – “When we stop asking, “What is wrong with that person?” and instead start asking, “What has happened to that person?” we can begin to change outcomes for those who have suffered great losses.”
I was provided with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. More excerpts at www.mylifeonestoryatatime.com
Quote - "…the general process of foster care. I suddenly came face-to-face with the truth in a way I never had. Without much work, I soon discovered that less than 1% of foster children receive a four-year degree, and that out of the nearly 1.6 million people incarcerated in the various correctional institutions nationwide, 1.3 million had been in the foster care system, or 80%. I knew that the system wasn’t great and I knew that I had struggled, but I had never taken the time to understand how bad it was. Over 400,000 children in foster care are affected every year and the number is growing."
Despite all of the odds stacked against her, Shenandoah not only graduated high school but went on to complete college. Garbage Bag Suitcase will break your heart. It is her story, told truthfully and without pretense. What the story reveals is just how broken our society is and how we are not only neglecting our country’s children but helping, by ignoring the problem, to raise broken adults.
Once foster children age out of care, they are left alone to fend for themselves. No home, nowhere to go except the streets, and eventually more often than not, into the criminal justice system.
Ridicule and lack of support continue to haunt foster children long into adulthood if it ever goes away. They struggle with little to no self-esteem and lack of acceptance. They struggle with forgiveness – of themselves and of the system. So many foster children suffer from food issues, having never had enough growing up. They learn to give, but not receive. Foster children learn to blend into their surroundings, not wanting to admit to being in foster care.
Children in foster care are more likely to suffer from PTSD. Some are never diagnosed and others are given psychotropic medications. Shenandoah spouts off alarming statistics that should shake America to its core.
There are staggering statistics that need to be addressed. A mere 61% of foster children age out of care without a place to live, becoming homeless. Less than 50% of foster children complete high school or obtain a G.E.D. Out of these, less than 3% attend college and of the 3%, only 1% are expected to finish their degree.
Garbage Bag Suitcase is the story of Shenandoah Chefalo, a child who grew up in an abusive home and went into foster care hoping for a better life. Life isn’t always fair, yet she not only survived foster care but graduated from college. She beat the odds. Now, she is out to open America’s eyes on the child foster care system. I am giving this book five stars. It is a must read for everyone. Children are our future and we do not have the luxury of dumping this problem into someone else’s lap.
I will end with one more quote – “When we stop asking, “What is wrong with that person?” and instead start asking, “What has happened to that person?” we can begin to change outcomes for those who have suffered great losses.”
I was provided with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. More excerpts at www.mylifeonestoryatatime.com
October 7, 2024
Excellent read. I saw the author’s presentation at a conference in Round Rock, Texas, last week, and she was phenomenal. Her story is inspirational. I wish I knew what it is in her DNA that allowed her to have so much resilience.
September 1, 2019
While the plight of the children in foster care and the very broken system are near to my heart, this memoir felt weirdly insincere.
July 8, 2020
Overall a good read. Informative and engaging.
The author skips huge chunks of her life, however; these gaps could have informed readers a bit more about who she is today, versus the summary we get towards the end of the book.
Great ideas on fixing foster care. If only those who make decisions would actually take the advice and use it.
The author skips huge chunks of her life, however; these gaps could have informed readers a bit more about who she is today, versus the summary we get towards the end of the book.
Great ideas on fixing foster care. If only those who make decisions would actually take the advice and use it.
April 9, 2017
An eye opener, I was so sad to see how badly people who should have loved her didn't. But she magnificently overcame that. Let's not let foster children who age out fall into unproductive lives.
April 18, 2016
This is a really powerful memoir of a young girl who was chronically neglected by her parents and eventually made the choice to commit herself to foster care at age of 12. Truly heartbreaking and poignant, Garbage Bag Suitcase is a story of a young woman's success despite aging out of a child welfare system that is badly broken and also a system that most definitely failed her at many points along the way. I read this with deep interest because we adopted our children from the domestic foster care system (but as infants) and I often work as a support person with adoptive families so I have a bit of familiarity with the topic matter. More children in foster care should share these stories so that people understand clearly what is lacking and where the problems exist. As Shenandoah was small her mother moved her so often that she never stayed long enough in any school district for anyone to really tweak to what was happening to her. Such a brutal but honest statement on how children fall through the cracks. What is interesting here is how this person, the author, manages to survive this horrendous neglect and maltreatment to become a successful business person, author and parent. I am overwhelmed by her resiliency here and why she survived, with scars, when we know hundred of children age out and fall into drug use, teen pregnancy, or prison. I know this a memoir but I almost wish this was also more deeply studied in a subsequent book. Policy makers should read this memoir and they should take it to heart and strive to do better for children who have nobody to speak up for them.
March 7, 2016
Shenandoah writes with incredible insight and clarity. Her experience as a child was heartbreaking to read about. At the same time, we hear a lot of opinions and information about foster care from those who have not actually lived it. This book provides unique perspective from an adult who knows intimately the feelings and thoughts of what it's like to be in a system that tries to help, but in many cases fails the children in need. I found this book very informative and intriguing. It's a quick read and kept me involved in the story from the first page to the last. Well done. Thank you for courageously sharing your story. It will help so many.
January 26, 2019
Chefalo said early in the book (maybe the foreword) that she isn't a writer, but was still encouraged to write her story. I felt like maybe she should have teamed up with someone who IS a writer in order to better tell it. The facts were there. There was plenty of information. Important information. There just didn't seem to be any emotional connection for me. It felt scattered at times, especially when she would mention in one chapter that it was "the last time she ever heard from" someone, but then the person would show up in the following chapters. I just didn't feel the flow of a story.
September 26, 2019
Loved this book
My name is Kivalina, I was forced to go by Kimmy from walking to well I am 49 and am trying to get people to use my birth name. I do not feel its fair to me to use fake name. As for your idea of using a Harry potter type home for foster kids. You are onto something AWESOME I think this is the perfect idea. This would solve so many problems. One problem I see with this is GREEDY people who run them. They are the ones who starve the kids. They buy cheep so they can pocket the extra money.
My name is Kivalina, I was forced to go by Kimmy from walking to well I am 49 and am trying to get people to use my birth name. I do not feel its fair to me to use fake name. As for your idea of using a Harry potter type home for foster kids. You are onto something AWESOME I think this is the perfect idea. This would solve so many problems. One problem I see with this is GREEDY people who run them. They are the ones who starve the kids. They buy cheep so they can pocket the extra money.
March 1, 2016
A poignant and compelling memoir that has inspired me to take action to improve the lives of foster kids in our country. Chefalo presents her own harrowing story of adversity and triumph (she is one of the 1% of foster kids who make it through college successfully) - as well as shocking statistics about foster care (a striking correlation between foster care and ultimate incarceration). I applaud her for telling her story so vividly, and inspiring us all to help make a change.
Read
October 14, 2016Michigan author, survived substance abusing and neglectful parents, followed by time in the foster system. Workaholism may have saved her (as it did me) until it stopped working. She's now a foster care system betterment advocate. Read this memoir for my first time attending the local Smart Girl's Book Club (yes, that's what it's called) next week.
February 19, 2016
This powerful, heart-breaking story offers real solutions for a broken foster care system that hurts not just the children but all of society. An important read that gave me more insight into an issue that truly needs more attention. Thank you Shen for your courage in sharing your compelling story!
August 8, 2025
3.5 stars
🧳 This was my first memoir about a foster kid and it was truly sad to read what the author went through both before, during, and after foster care.
📖 She takes the time to write about how the system is broken and ways to fix it.
🧳 This was my first memoir about a foster kid and it was truly sad to read what the author went through both before, during, and after foster care.
📖 She takes the time to write about how the system is broken and ways to fix it.
February 19, 2016
Shenandoah Chefalo's "Garbage Bag Suitcase" is nothing short of haunting. I was truly stunned by this author's personal journey. Her story is heartbreaking, yet inspiring. Beautifully written.
February 19, 2016
An amazing, powerful, heartbreaking story! Everyone could learn something important from Garbage Bag Suitcase.
February 19, 2016
So compelling and poignant. This book was really well written, tragic, yet also beautiful as well. Definitely adding this to my list of favorite memoirs.
September 23, 2018
A must read!
February 19, 2020
Title: Garbage Bag Suitcase
Author: Shenandoah Chefalo
Genre: Biography, Autobiography
Publication Date: February 1, 2016
Even though I am not someone who knows much about the foster care system or has any emotional ties associated to it, when given the task to pick a book about an influential topic, I chose Shenandoah Chefalo’s “Garbage Bag Suitcase”. I was quite surprised to find that this book was actually a autobiography, because so many of the biographies I have read have been stuffed with an overwhelming amount of informational facts. However, from the moment I picked this book up and read the title, it captured my attention in a surprising way.
“Garbage Bag Suitcase” is a memoir written in a first person narrative style about the author’s true life events. The story begins when Chefalo, the main character, is the age of 4 and introduces us to her life. She includes her constant moving around from place to place within the United States, sometimes staying at places for only a few weeks, her mother’s neglectful relationship with her, and the emotional and physical abuse she endured from her father whenever he actually was around. She then continues to move through her childhood, stopping at some of the most traumatic events, such as when her dad pushes her out of a moving car or when she is forced to sleep covered in her own feces. Finally, when her mother leaves her at her grandmother’s retirement community, she decides she has finally had enough, and decides to put herself into foster care. Hoping her life would finally start to become better, Chefalo’s life in foster care is sadly not much different than her previous upbringing, since her foster parents continue to neglect her. When Chefalo ages out of the system, her life finally turns around. She defies the odds when she not only gets into college, but also graduates.
The biggest part that makes this book different than others and truly influential is the emotional rawness of the book. Upon reading the book, you can clearly see that the author took no initiative in hiding the torment that she lived through. The detailed descriptions of each traumatic event not only makes the book hard to put down, but also cleverly instills the author’s message into the readers’ heads, without physically stating it. The emotional rawness is also a reason I advise caution when reading this book, as it depicts events in such a way that may make readers squeamish or trigger someone who has been through similar events.
Simply put, Shenandoah Chefalo illuminates the problems within our current foster care system through the wonderfully crafted personal journey she has taken her readers through. Although the main message of the book is tied to the necessary improvements needed to be made to the foster care system and the implementations she suggests for its reform at the end of the book. In a broader perspective, this book also illuminates the importance of uncovering the faults in the things we as society have created and not hiding their issues, but taking the initiative to fix what so much of our country’s growing generation is affected by. “Garbage Bag Suitcase” has definitely opened my mind to something I hadn’t thought much about and was a breath-taking read.
Author: Shenandoah Chefalo
Genre: Biography, Autobiography
Publication Date: February 1, 2016
Even though I am not someone who knows much about the foster care system or has any emotional ties associated to it, when given the task to pick a book about an influential topic, I chose Shenandoah Chefalo’s “Garbage Bag Suitcase”. I was quite surprised to find that this book was actually a autobiography, because so many of the biographies I have read have been stuffed with an overwhelming amount of informational facts. However, from the moment I picked this book up and read the title, it captured my attention in a surprising way.
“Garbage Bag Suitcase” is a memoir written in a first person narrative style about the author’s true life events. The story begins when Chefalo, the main character, is the age of 4 and introduces us to her life. She includes her constant moving around from place to place within the United States, sometimes staying at places for only a few weeks, her mother’s neglectful relationship with her, and the emotional and physical abuse she endured from her father whenever he actually was around. She then continues to move through her childhood, stopping at some of the most traumatic events, such as when her dad pushes her out of a moving car or when she is forced to sleep covered in her own feces. Finally, when her mother leaves her at her grandmother’s retirement community, she decides she has finally had enough, and decides to put herself into foster care. Hoping her life would finally start to become better, Chefalo’s life in foster care is sadly not much different than her previous upbringing, since her foster parents continue to neglect her. When Chefalo ages out of the system, her life finally turns around. She defies the odds when she not only gets into college, but also graduates.
The biggest part that makes this book different than others and truly influential is the emotional rawness of the book. Upon reading the book, you can clearly see that the author took no initiative in hiding the torment that she lived through. The detailed descriptions of each traumatic event not only makes the book hard to put down, but also cleverly instills the author’s message into the readers’ heads, without physically stating it. The emotional rawness is also a reason I advise caution when reading this book, as it depicts events in such a way that may make readers squeamish or trigger someone who has been through similar events.
Simply put, Shenandoah Chefalo illuminates the problems within our current foster care system through the wonderfully crafted personal journey she has taken her readers through. Although the main message of the book is tied to the necessary improvements needed to be made to the foster care system and the implementations she suggests for its reform at the end of the book. In a broader perspective, this book also illuminates the importance of uncovering the faults in the things we as society have created and not hiding their issues, but taking the initiative to fix what so much of our country’s growing generation is affected by. “Garbage Bag Suitcase” has definitely opened my mind to something I hadn’t thought much about and was a breath-taking read.
May 3, 2022
I feel like everyone has a very different idea of what a foster kid's life looks like. I have known for a few years that the system is so broken, and this book only solidified my grief for the kids in this system and everyone who it has affected.
I think a personal story is one of the most powerful things in the world. You can't argue with someone's personal experience, who are you to tell them they're wrong? Shenandoah Chefalo's memoir is gripping and heartbreaking. She brings you on a journey through her life and what she has discovered along the way. One of the most striking parts of her childhood was that she thought her home life was normal. She thought that's how everyone lived. I can remember specific things about my childhood where I thought the same thing (i.e. going to church on Sunday).
Most of the book focuses on her childhood and how her experiences shaped her as a person. The last 4 chapters of the book talk about how we can improve the system. This part of the book is so important because we can discuss how awful the foster care system is all we want, but it won't do anything unless we actually come up with solutions. Chefalo's solutions sound great, although I am certainly not an authority on the subject.
The writing quality is very good, it sounds professional but has an emotional charge as well. I listened to the audiobook which was narrated beautifully.
Overall, I found this book enlightening. It's sad and hard to think about so many kids going through similar situations, but I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in foster care. Whether you're just curious, or want to foster yourself. Understanding someone's personal experience can only help. Please be cautious of TW: abuse, drug use, starvation, abandonment, extortion, and psychological trauma.
I think a personal story is one of the most powerful things in the world. You can't argue with someone's personal experience, who are you to tell them they're wrong? Shenandoah Chefalo's memoir is gripping and heartbreaking. She brings you on a journey through her life and what she has discovered along the way. One of the most striking parts of her childhood was that she thought her home life was normal. She thought that's how everyone lived. I can remember specific things about my childhood where I thought the same thing (i.e. going to church on Sunday).
Most of the book focuses on her childhood and how her experiences shaped her as a person. The last 4 chapters of the book talk about how we can improve the system. This part of the book is so important because we can discuss how awful the foster care system is all we want, but it won't do anything unless we actually come up with solutions. Chefalo's solutions sound great, although I am certainly not an authority on the subject.
The writing quality is very good, it sounds professional but has an emotional charge as well. I listened to the audiobook which was narrated beautifully.
Overall, I found this book enlightening. It's sad and hard to think about so many kids going through similar situations, but I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in foster care. Whether you're just curious, or want to foster yourself. Understanding someone's personal experience can only help. Please be cautious of TW: abuse, drug use, starvation, abandonment, extortion, and psychological trauma.
April 28, 2018
Garbage Bad Suitcase is the author's story of her childhood. She describes having to put all of her belongings in a garbage bag whenever her parents moved to a new location in the middle of the night. They were constantly fleeing something and she never really knew what that was. The book clearly describes the confusion and pain that she experienced while being uprooted. She longed for a stable physical and emotional home.
The author not only had to endure her parents constant moving but also their abuse. They used
isolation and even starvation as ways to control her. When she moved to an aunt's house, she yet again endured neglect and abandonment. And lastly, she was placed in a foster children program that failed her. Her foster parents used her as a means of earning money instead of providing haven. These unhealthy beginnings continued into her adult life when these adults demanded certain behaviors and/or money from her.
Although much of this book is about her childhood, it clearly shows how not having emotional support impacted her entire life. She was able to beat the odds and get a college degree and become a successful business woman, wife, and mother. Still, her thought process is still largely of that wounded child. It shows from time to time in her writing.
I would recommend this book. It gives a clear personal account of her experiences as she was uprooted from place to place. It's also interesting to read that most of the people in her life are still unable to have a healthy relationship with her or with themselves.
The author not only had to endure her parents constant moving but also their abuse. They used
isolation and even starvation as ways to control her. When she moved to an aunt's house, she yet again endured neglect and abandonment. And lastly, she was placed in a foster children program that failed her. Her foster parents used her as a means of earning money instead of providing haven. These unhealthy beginnings continued into her adult life when these adults demanded certain behaviors and/or money from her.
Although much of this book is about her childhood, it clearly shows how not having emotional support impacted her entire life. She was able to beat the odds and get a college degree and become a successful business woman, wife, and mother. Still, her thought process is still largely of that wounded child. It shows from time to time in her writing.
I would recommend this book. It gives a clear personal account of her experiences as she was uprooted from place to place. It's also interesting to read that most of the people in her life are still unable to have a healthy relationship with her or with themselves.
January 16, 2021
This book will definitely tug at your heart strings. It is the story of Shenandoah's life and the miraculous way she came through the system to be a college educated woman. The first half of her life was spent with her mother, never really staying in a place longer than a few months (if that). Her father (who she later realized was not her biological father) was often in and out of their lives due to his abuse and drug use (the mother had addiction issues too). At one point Shenandoah decided that she would rather be in foster care than with her family. The only problem was once she got placed with a family, things were less than ideal there. Due to never staying anywhere too long, Shen had trouble building true relationships and friendships with anyone. Some of the big statistics that stood out to me were:
*Less than 3% of kids in foster care will go to college, less than 1% will receive a degree
*Less than 50% will finish high school or have a GED
*Children who were place in foster care are 25% more likely to have PTSD than the general populations 4.5%
*Out of the 1.6 million inmates housed in federal and state prison in 2006, 80% had been in foster care at some point in their lives
I really loved this quote, "Everything in your life is a reflection of a choice you have made. If you want a different result make a different choice."
*Less than 3% of kids in foster care will go to college, less than 1% will receive a degree
*Less than 50% will finish high school or have a GED
*Children who were place in foster care are 25% more likely to have PTSD than the general populations 4.5%
*Out of the 1.6 million inmates housed in federal and state prison in 2006, 80% had been in foster care at some point in their lives
I really loved this quote, "Everything in your life is a reflection of a choice you have made. If you want a different result make a different choice."
March 28, 2025
I'm so thankful that the State of Michigan has updated their practices to include financial literacy and preparation for adulthood. Shenandoah was left with absolutely no skill or preparation for adulthood and because of this was used by her foster family. I liked how this book noted a couple hard realities that caseworkers struggle to comprehend. A. Children will/tend to seek out their biological family even if they've been adopted, put in a guardianship and live out the rest of their childhood away from their bio family. There is a sense of familiarity and belonging there. Even though it's hard to comprehend a child wanting to find their parent that abused them. The department now has MYOI that supports children as well as YAVFC that will allow us to help children into their early adulthood, helping them be successful. Additionally, this book pointed out the importance of identifying family for the youth. So many children are left thinking they're alone in this world when we can give them the world by providing their genealogy and family. Also evident through this book is the lasting affects trauma and FC had on this child. Shenandoah had to re-address her trauma reminders in every stage of development and change. It took well into her 40s to really come to terms, and she still struggles.
October 28, 2023
A brave and searing look into a horrific childhood, Chefalo’s memoir manages to encapsulate a ton of emotion into its short length. An innovative new idea, the epilogue provides ideas of ways to reform the foster care system that fails so many, and that part was incredibly fascinating and extremely helpful. There are even out of the box type of suggestions that reach beyond the constraints of the foster care system. I found this particular system very enlightening. We need to listen to the voices of the people who have experienced the systems that we are working to change. Her resilience shines through and her hard work to get out of several impossible situations is eventually rewarded. This is such a powerful testament to overcoming a traumatic childhood and gaining ownership of your own life!
December 4, 2021
Great memoir of a woman who grew up with abusive and neglectful parents and also in the foster care system. Depicts quite a lot of child abuse and neglect so don't read if you are very sensitive to those topics, but it's also so important for people to be aware of this - the foster care parts were particularly hard to read and I appreciated that the author lays out how atrocious foster care can be in the United States. The author is a big advocate for revamping the foster care system and she shares some truly eye-opening and heartbreaking statistics about the fate of foster children after they age out of the system. My only complaint about this book was I disliked the narrator of the audiobook.
February 12, 2021
Frank and eye-opening account of a throwaway child
Despite the cruelest of treatment by biological and steparents, the author is driven to get an education and survive placement in the foster system. After marrying, becoming a mother and completing her degree, Shenandoah matures into a successful paralegal in practice with her husband, Gerry, a lawyer. Once her life seems stable, Shen tackles trying to reform the way the public perceives foster children, and to suggest the best examp!es of school settings that address foster kids' special needs.
Despite the cruelest of treatment by biological and steparents, the author is driven to get an education and survive placement in the foster system. After marrying, becoming a mother and completing her degree, Shenandoah matures into a successful paralegal in practice with her husband, Gerry, a lawyer. Once her life seems stable, Shen tackles trying to reform the way the public perceives foster children, and to suggest the best examp!es of school settings that address foster kids' special needs.
September 1, 2023
I read this after it was suggested to me. It’s an incredible story of survival. I feel like the author might have done some healing and reflection while writing this book. I wish her well.
As for my criticism for the way the book is written. It felt like a timeline of events that transpired against her, without of her feeling for the-most part. I felt it hard to imagine what she was feeling, or what events truly effected her. I feel disconnected from her reading this, like she still keeps her experiences at an arms length.
As for my criticism for the way the book is written. It felt like a timeline of events that transpired against her, without of her feeling for the-most part. I felt it hard to imagine what she was feeling, or what events truly effected her. I feel disconnected from her reading this, like she still keeps her experiences at an arms length.
June 25, 2024
3.5 stars
Overall this was a quick book to get through. I had the pleasure of doing a 3 day workshop with Shen and in person she was AMAZING - 5 stars! Her story and her teachings of controlling what you can blew me away. I did the training just this year (2024) and couldn’t wait to read her book! The book was good, but a little disjointed and the end focused a lot on boarding schools being the solution for foster kids, which I’m not sure I agree. Anyhow, it was worth the read and if you can attend any of her conferences, I would highly recommend that!
Overall this was a quick book to get through. I had the pleasure of doing a 3 day workshop with Shen and in person she was AMAZING - 5 stars! Her story and her teachings of controlling what you can blew me away. I did the training just this year (2024) and couldn’t wait to read her book! The book was good, but a little disjointed and the end focused a lot on boarding schools being the solution for foster kids, which I’m not sure I agree. Anyhow, it was worth the read and if you can attend any of her conferences, I would highly recommend that!
November 23, 2024
Garbage bag suitcase - 3-3-2024 - I don't know how I feel about this one. This book is a memoir about the difficulty growing up with abusive parents and then ultimately ending up in foster care. She is abused by her parents and in her teens ends up in foster care and ageing out. I think it is a good perspective to hear but I don't think I necessarily agree with her reforms she proposes. We need more programs that can help fix the problem like food insecurity, how expensive medical Care is, the cost of college and housing broadly. I don't think this is done with boarding schools. 2/5
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