Started strong, with an introduction to the central character and matriarch of the family, Josephine. We meet her as a young girl in Italy who is unhappily wed in an arranged marriage, left behind, and then sent-for several years later by her husband, who has gone to America to improve his chances, and settled in Providence, RI.
The structure of the book is very interesting... as the all the characters are linked by their family connections, yet each one is distinct. This is not a family saga that starts out with poverty and ends as an American success story. There are a lot of dark tales here, and this is not the comforting read about the Italian-American experience that you might find from other authors. Still, it is compelling and explores themes of loyalty, sexuality, grief and anger through original characters. I'll be looking at some other works by Ann Hood – I'd like to get to know her better.
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/12270027-joan">View all my reviews</a>
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