Literary Nonfiction. Memoir. Yearning for acceptance from her Italian-speaking mother-in-law, Bea Tusiani's stories offer a glimpse into the struggle of generations. From Bushwick, Brooklyn in the 1950's to her mother-in-law's kitchen in the Bronx, Tusiani shows how two women who loved the same man, one as a mother, the other a wife, came to an understanding . . . con amore . . . with love. A sparkling memoir about life as an Italian girl who becomes a wife in the enchanted village of Brooklyn.
The lost world of childhood and adolescence is here faithfully recaptured, with an acute understanding of the tradeoffs and heartbreaks involved. Bea Tusiani's memoir is richly evocative, skillfully written, honest, compassionate, and wise. --Phillip Lopate
You will find much to celebrate in this beautifully told tale.--Adriana Trigiani