John Campione has come home to start a new life, and it's beginning to look like it will be anything but a quiet one In the uproarious Life in a Nutshell, author John Figliomeni introduces readers to a delightful cast of characters that make most other neighborhoods look normal by comparison. Freshly retired from the fire department at age fifty-four, Campione makes the decision to return to his hometown of Childs, Pennsylvania. His need to reconnect with his roots grows in part from a well-intentioned wish to make sense of a life that was often fraught with mistakes. Through illuminating and oftentimes hilarious conversations with hometown friends and family, Campione slowly comes to terms with the places he has been and the choices he has made. Reminiscing upon their hell-raising days with a friend and former firefighter coworker, Campione is faced with very real questions about his past... and his future. Just as he is settling into his new role as hometown retiree, Campione is once again forced to confront both the man he has become and the man he wants to be when he is introduced to Archina, the grown daughter he never knew he had. Unceremoniously thrust into the new role of a father, Campione soon learns that he may not have the time he needs to get to know his own daughter. Archina is in dire need of a kidney transplant and, desperate for time, Campione attempts to fill her in on all the wacky, wonderful history of the family she never knew. While sharing his stories and getting to know his daughter, Campione comes to the realization that Archina may just be the purpose he needed to become the good man he always wanted to be.