Pat D. (pat0814) reviewed on + 379 more book reviews
Apparently this is the third book in a trilogy. I read it as a stand-alone, and don't think I missed much by not reading the first two books. The Grassos are a first-generation Italian American family who own a successful restaurant. Their married daughter, Prima, has four sons and lives nearby and unmarried son, Frankie, is teaching at an academic setting. Their older son, Tony, died as a teenager.
I didn't find much to admire or like in any of these characters. There is a great deal of secrecy among the family in order to maintain the illusion of a happy Italian family, and is particularly sad given the circumstances surrounding Tony's death. The relationship between Frankie and his mother is often cloying, and Prima's actions toward her sons are odd and inappropriate. Frankie is the least likeable. His smug arrogance about an unimpressive role in academia and slavish devotion to a married woman are pathetic. The big plan posed by Prima for the entire family to return to Italy to reunite with the family there is the only plot development in an otherwise tedious read.
I didn't find much to admire or like in any of these characters. There is a great deal of secrecy among the family in order to maintain the illusion of a happy Italian family, and is particularly sad given the circumstances surrounding Tony's death. The relationship between Frankie and his mother is often cloying, and Prima's actions toward her sons are odd and inappropriate. Frankie is the least likeable. His smug arrogance about an unimpressive role in academia and slavish devotion to a married woman are pathetic. The big plan posed by Prima for the entire family to return to Italy to reunite with the family there is the only plot development in an otherwise tedious read.
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