Why a Booktrail?
1949: A story of an Italian American family set against a Shakesperian tapestry
Kiss Carlo
What you need to know before your trail
It’s 1949 and South Philadelphia bursts with opportunity during the post-war boom. The Palazzini Cab Company & Western Union Telegraph Office, owned and operated by Dominic Palazzini and his three sons, is flourishing. But a decades-long feud that split Dominic and his brother Mike and their once-close families sets the stage for a re-match.
Amidst the hoopla, the arrival of an urgent telegram from Italy upends the life of Nicky Castone (Dominic and his wife’s orphaned nephew) who lives and works with his Uncle Dom and his family. Nicky decides, at 30, that he wants more. When he admits to his fiancée that he’s been secretly moonlighting at the local Shakespeare theater company, Nicky finds himself drawn to the stage, its colorful players and to the determined Calla Borelli, who inherited the enterprise from her father, Nicky must choose between the conventional life his family expects of him or chart a new course and risk losing everything he cherishes.
Travel Guide
Roseto, Italy and Roseto PA, USA
The novel will take you from South Philly to Roseto, Italy, its sister city, Roseto, PA and to New York, in 1949
Roseto in Italy and the town of the same name in PA are twin towns with strong Italian connections.
The novel follows the story of a large Italian American family which has settled in Philadelphia in the 1950s. Dom and Mike work for rival taxi companies and the rest of the family still live under the strong connections of the Italian family network.
In both locations, the love and importance of the theatre.The Shakespearean theatre with its themes of love, hate, jealousy and every other Shakespearean emotion you can think of. You don’t have to have read the classics to get the most from these connections as the author does this well enough herself.
If you know the story of Twelfth Night, then this is the plot and structure of Kiss Carlo with its quotes from the play peppered throughout for maximum effect.
Booktrail Boarding Pass: Kiss Carlo
Destination : Roseto (PA), Roseto (Italy) Author/Guide: Adriana Trigiani Departure Time: 1949
Back to ResultsWhere Next?
