Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly
This substantial collection of mostly original short fiction, poetry and critical essays gives a colorful, if not terribly diverse view of the art and life of Italian Americans. The short stories, on the whole, are excellent, particularly Giose Rimanell's ``Memory of Two Tuesdays,'' detailing a marriage buffeted by the storms of infidelity, and Tony Ardizzone's ``Nonna,'' the senile odyssey of a lonely old woman on her way to the grocery store. Yet the majority of the stories portray variations on the same themes: blue-collar families struggling to make ends meet in a hostile New World, the younger generation disavowing their heritage and longing for WASP-hood. Addressing similar concerns, the poetry is far less effective, the imagery, for the most part, trite and mawkishly nostalgic. The critical essays offer thoughtful examinations of Italian American writers and filmmakers. Robert Viscusi's ``A Literature Considering Itself: The Allegory of Italian America'' and Robert Casillo's ``Moments in Italian-American Cinema: From Little Caesar to Coppola and Scorsese'' are among the best. The editors are academics and editors of the journal Voices in Italian Americana. (Jan.)
From the Margin, Writings in Italian Americana / Edition 1
- ISBN: 1557531528
- ISBN-13: 2901557531529
- Edition: Revised
- Pub. date: 10/28/2000
- Publisher: Purdue University Press
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Ten years after they began compiling the first edition, the editors of From the Margin have reshaped it into a second edition which reflects seven years of classroom and general use. This edition is a more contemporary representation of what the Italian/American cultural landscape is today. In a few cases, the editors have substituted new voices, in other cases they have simply added more established voices that, for an array of reasons, were not available for the first edition.
The reader of this revised edition now has, interwoven into the established group of the first edition, the lyrical voices of Mary Jo Bona, Peter Carravetta, and Robert Viscusi; the prose writing of Mary Bucci Bush, Carol Maso, Ben Morreale, and Anthony Valerio; and the critical voice of William Boelhower. In addition, the bibliography of critical voices and the filmography have been updated.
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This anthology is designed to appeal to both popular and scholarly audiences. Slightly more than half the selections are creative works, the rest being essays on specific Italian/American masterpieces and such general topics as the films of Coppola and Scorsese. Thus, it is not hard to imagine one reader reacting to Fred L. Gardaphe's story ``Mora Amore'' by saying, ``That's just how Grandpa used to talk'' and another calling the same work (to paraphrase the introduction) ``an example of the cultural dissonance produced by historical process.'' Both nostalgia and scholarship are appealed to, and so are the taste buds: even the criticism refers unceasingly to pastry, a sip of wine, the scent of garlic on one's fingers. Buon appetito! -- David Kirby, Florida State Univ., TallahasseeBooknews
This anthology features poetry, fiction, and critical essays by Italian-American writers, focusing on their experiences as such. A critical bibliography and filmography are also included. Contributors include scholars in literature, history, and American studies, as well as poets and other writers. Topics include the role of Italian- American literature in a multicultural canon, the roots of Italian- American literature in an oral culture, ethnic language, the experience of women in Italian-American culture, and the immigrant experience in America. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)