Customer Reviews

Don't Tell Mama!: The Penguin Book of Italian American Writing

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Into a medium sized book add: a little under one hundred Italian American writers spanning an almost equal number of years, a liberal amount of humor and irony, chopped up tragedy, mixed with redemption, olive oil (of course!), and finally one terrific editor (Gina Barreca). One need not stir liberally as the contents tend to mix and mingle well on their own. What do you get?

The most complex and multifaceted Italian American anthology that anybody has ever cooked up. Bravo!

Once again Gina Barreca wows the reader with a wonderful book by a talented author who does beautiful anthologies as well. She finds the reality, the humor and the depth in any situation. Those who love her writing should check out "They Used to call me snow white, but I drifted" "The Penguin Book of Women's Humor" "Too Much of a Good Thing is Wonderful" and the Washington Post Magazine where once a month she and Gene Weingarten do a column together. They are publishing a book together in 2003 that will also be great.

If you enjoy stories about Italian American's you won't be able to put down Gina Barreca's anthology. A notably missing work is a recent book that probably would have been represented had it been around in 2002 - Amatore Mille's ELEVEN DAYS IN AUGUST - a heartwarming memoir about a Wall Street sales executive who "vacations" from his NY job each year to rejoin his Italian family in their Italian sausage sandwich business at the Wisconsin State Fair - a must-read for lover's of Barreca's book!