Elizabeth Street is one of the main streets in the central business district of Melbourne, Australia, part of the Hoddle Grid laid out in It is presumed to have.
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After their marriage her husband Nunzio set forth to America following Giovanna's brother Lorenzo,in Found this book through a friends recommendation After their marriage her husband Nunzio set forth to America following Giovanna's brother Lorenzo,in order to earn enough money and return to his beloved Scilla so that Giovanna could study to become a Doctor. Unfortunately an accident unfolds a new life plan for Giovanna.
Through her great granddaughter author Laurie Fabiano, Giovanna's pain, heartaches, joys, and family secrets are brought forth in amazing details full of history of both the old country and the harrowing life Italian immigrants led in the new country, including the infamous Black Hand which callously extorted and terrorized their own people.
I loved this book and related to the riveting story right from the start. My own great grandparents came to America around the same exact time and also settled on Elizabeth Street. My great grandfather too was killed while working for an electric company leaving my great grandmother alone in a strange land with a young toddler and my grandmother who was only two months old. Finally,my grandmother witnessed a murder in her apartment building by the Black Hand, and this was her last straw She returned to Scilla.
I so enjoyed reading about all the Italian ways and traditions which were and are so much part of my own life. Elizabeth Street, was such a great read and made me not only appreciate my family's heritage but also the plight of all immigrants old and new. Elizabeth Street was a quick read. It starts with her life in the "Old Country" and her marriage to Nunzio, her childhood sweetheart. The story then shifts to Nunzio and discusses his attempts to make a better life in La America.
Elizabeth Street
It describes the tenemants in Little Italy and the horrible working conditions of the Italian immigrants building modern New York. Eventually Fra Elizabeth Street was a quick read. Eventually Francesca finds her way to New York too. The novel describes her journey on the ship, her passage through Ellis Island, her growing family, and the growth of La Mano Nera - organized crime - in the immigrant community.
The novel also cuts at random times to Francesca's Great Granddaughter who seeks to understand the story of Angelina, Francesca's daughter. I thought the novel was a bit cliched. I remember some of the descriptions of immigrant life from my own visits to Ellis Island and Little Italy as a kid - right down to the button hook eye checks. Unfortunately the novel was predictable. They spoiled key plot elements but were not long enough for the reader to develop any attachment to the granddaughter.
Based on the author's note, I think Angelina's granddaughter is the author and she is telling the story of how she learned about her family's arrival to America and adventures in Little Italy. While I appreciate the fact that the story was based on true events, I think the novel would have worked better focusing only on Francesca's perspective. View all 3 comments. All I can say after reading this book is "Wow! Giovanna's story is heartbreaking and inspiring at the same time. During this time period, Italian immigrants were treated poorly by their new country.
They were given the worst jobs at the worst pay. They were so poor, ten All I can say after reading this book is "Wow! They were so poor, tenements were teeming with more people than would be legal to occupy such a small space today. And if this wasn't bad enough, they were victimized by their own kind - gangs of Italian thugs, called the Black Hand, used extortion and violence to threaten these hard-working people, who were just trying to make a decent life for themselves.
I don't want to give anything away, but there are so many amazing events that happen in this book - I was mesmerized the entire time.
Elizabeth Street, Melbourne
And in addition, Fabiano clearly took the time to research the world her ancestors lived in. It was a wonderful glimpse into the past, and I learned things about both New York and Italy that were new to me. I highly recommend this book! Coming from Italian ancestry, the first story involving the Italian immigrants was the one that really grabbed me, but I wanted much more than that novel provided. Fabiano's historical fiction novel traces the main character, Giovanna, from her childhood in Italy to her adulthood in New York City.
The author put a lot of research into this book, and it shows.
I felt like I was stepping into the shoes of my ancestors, seeing the world both Italy, the Old Country, and America, the New World through their eyes. The novel centers around Giovanna, a woman who, in true Italian style, marries her cousin, Nunzio, the love of her life. As was common for many Italians at the turn of the century, with opportunities limited in Italy, he leaves to go to America to make enough money to either come home and provide her with a good life, or bring her to America, too, once he has saved enough.
He faced many prejudices upon coming to America. Employment ads around that time offered the best pay to white men, 2nd best to black men, and 3rd to Italians. Giovanna eventually comes to America, and we watch her go through the immigration experience upon the ship from Italy, and then through Ellis Island. Having studied my ancestry on Ancestry. There's also mystery and intrigue in the novel, although nothing upsettingly violent. I don't want to spoil the story all based on true events from the author's family history , but I will say that I was engaged throughout the entire novel.
I kept wondering what life was like for my Italian ancestors who came through Ellis Island, and now I had visuals, thanks to the author's descriptive text. The novel also came with an extremely helpful family tree at the beginning and glossary that translated Italian words and phrases at the end. I referred to both often. This is an interesting book. Written about the author's actual family and family events, it tells the story of an Italian family's immigration to the United States during the early 's and the struggles they faced here as they carved a space for themselves in their new country.
It also touches on the struggles their family in Italy faced, which were arguably worse than those of the immigrants, because they were left without the promise of the American dream. Had the book been a work of fictio This is an interesting book. Had the book been a work of fiction entirely, I would have had some issues with it. The coverage of the kidnapping seemed to take over the last third of the book, and seemed to change the direction of the story. But, that's what really happened, so it's hard to argue with her retelling of it.
I would read other books by Fabiano, especially if they were about her great-grandmother Giovanna, who was a particularly interesting and inspiring character. If my great-grandmother were that interesting, I probably would have written a book about her too. I absolutely loved this book. What an amazing story and what an amazing way to share it! As she explains throughout the book, she becomes fascinated with her family's history when her great grandmother becomes visibly upset with a mob documentary and she realizes that, despite her family's and the italian way of keeping things private, there is a story here to learn and to share.
She weaves this tale so that you are attached to each character, real life people, to each story. You're heartbroken I absolutely loved this book. You're heartbroken by deaths and kidnappings and destruction, hoping the story was different, heartened by the "forca" of these people, in particular Giovanna. And it's all within a well researched historical setting.
You're not drowning in history but you FEEL it with every page. And I would love to hear more about other family member's tales. This was a great story and I learned some new Italian swear words and insults so that's kind of a bonus. I didn't find anything formulaic about this book maybe because it was based on her family stories.
I had never heard of the Black Hand before and found that fascinating. I thought the relationships were well developed between the main characters. I wish I knew more why Nonna had such problems with her daughter but maybe that's for another book? The book is a familial saga set in the heart of an Italian family in early 's New York City, loosely based on the author's own family. At the time, NYC was experiencing an influx of immigrants and the prejudice against Italian immigrants was blatant as was the power and terror that the Black Hand held over its countrymen.
These tidbits of hist 2. These tidbits of history are woven into the plot throughout the book but, at times, it felt like the plot came second to her opportunity to add in a unique historical setting, for example, an impromptu trip to Coney Island. Fabiano uses multiple timelines to tell her story but it often came off as awkward and distracting as the plot jumped back and forth.
I also didn't enjoy being told about a major plot point early in the book which made for a lackluster second half of the book since I knew how things would pan out. The subject and era was interesting but for a book with such high ratings I found the writing to be clunky and mediocre at best with the letters that Giovanna received from the Black Hand coming off as silly and juvenile and hard to read on my Kindle.
For a story that is loosely based on her own family, Fabiano's storytelling felt detached and many of her characters' actions felt improbable. Add in that there was too much 'telling, not enough showing' in regards to the plot and writing style and you can see why this book didn't live up to my expectations. There was potential for a great, sweeping saga of a read but I don't think that Fabiano's writing was up to the task.
Overall, a light read set in an interesting era but there are other books with similar plots that do a better job of showcasing the subject and early 20th century New York immigrant experience. The first half of this novel was mesmerizing, but the second half moved oddly at such a fast pace that it shifted the feel entirely.
Still a really fantastic story about Giovanna and Nunzio, who fall in love and marry in their idyllic Italian seaside home, then immigrate to New York during the first decade of the 's to escape starvation. Their story is interwoven with the stories of hundreds of other Italian immigrants to the United States, all of whom were seeking a better l Almost 5 stars. Their story is interwoven with the stories of hundreds of other Italian immigrants to the United States, all of whom were seeking a better life. Tragedy strikes many times over, with much of the action in the second half focusing on the family's resistance to the Black Hand.
The resilience and determination of the characters, especially Giovanna, and of course, their faith and devotion to family all help to see the family through. It's a detailed narrative of Italian immigrants who came to America seeking a better life, but faced deep-seated prejudice, were forced to work long hours at unsafe menial jobs, lived in poverty-stricken neighborhoods with fellow immigrants, and on top of it all, were terrorized by Italian thugs as they struggled to survive.
Giovanna Costa was strong and brave - she had to be, as she Elizabeth Street by Laurie Fabiano is an absorbing, emotional family saga set in Italy and NY in the early s. Giovanna Costa was strong and brave - she had to be, as she suffered more setbacks, tragedies and crime than many others in her neighborhood. What separates this novel from most other immigrant fiction is that the author has captured the true events of her great-grandmother's life, as retold by her grandmother. Their family tree is provided for the reader to keep track of names and relationships.
As tragedy piles upon tragedy in the story, it's not over-the-top sensational fiction; it really happened. I was struck by the anti-Italian prejudice reflected in wages: So it's a surprise to read that the US medical community was more backward than Italy: Giovanna did not just accept the hardships of her new life; she aggressively pursued justice in the case of her beloved Nunzio's death due to unsafe working conditions.
She was pragmatic not hopelessly sentimental or romantic in her decision to marry an eligible husband, to better provide for her future. How horribly ironic that her victory against big business her settlements led the criminals calling themselves The Black Hand to focus on her. Giovanna bravely turned the tables on the criminals to save her daughter. Regardless of heritage, all can be thankful for ancestors who worked extremely hard to make a better life for their children. Reading how Giovanna prevailed, through courage, persistence and hard work, can provide us a healthy perspective when we're stuck in traffic supremely trivial in comparison.
I forget which of my many book sources Vulture, perhaps? I was very surprised to see that this was Ms. Fabiano's first book - the writing was compelling and the story kept me engaged the whole time. And the cherry on the sundae was it was a totally true story, and I wished I could have met Giovanna Big Nanny myself as well. Not to get all "blame the patriarchy", but this book was a great reminder that strong women in history, especially th I forget which of my many book sources Vulture, perhaps? Not to get all "blame the patriarchy", but this book was a great reminder that strong women in history, especially those who had to leave their entire lives to move to a foreign country, were the real MVPs.
Jul 29, Leanne Pazik rated it it was amazing. Elizabeth Street This was the best book I have read in a long time! Since I am an Italian American, I found myself unable to put the book down. It will stay with me for a long time, and shed light on my grandparents coming to America and the secrets they always kept.
Sure enjoyed this book! This book was a great read with a bit of history mixed in. I really recommend it. Life in southern Italy post-unification is supposed to be filled with promise but unfortunately that turns out not to be the case for Giovanna and Nunzio. The two are cousins and sweethearts and are finally able to marry after Nunzio finishes college in the north. However, there are no jobs for an engineer in the south so Nunzio must go to America, the land of dreams.
Elizabeth Street by Laurie Fabiano
The women of Scilla see the Statue of Liberty as a puttana whore , stealing their men from them. Giovanna waits and waits for Nu Life in southern Italy post-unification is supposed to be filled with promise but unfortunately that turns out not to be the case for Giovanna and Nunzio. Giovanna waits and waits for Nunzio to return as she learns to become a midwife and help women in their village. When tragedy strikes, Giovanna heads to New York. Life in New York isn't any better and is sometimes worse with extreme prejudice against Italians and wicked extortionists from their own 'hood threatening anyone who doesn't obey.
When one of her own flesh and blood is threatened, Giovanna will risk her own life and hard-earned success to rescue her loved one. I really liked some of the details in the story, especially Scilla and Coney Island. I thought the strongest sections of the book were Anna's memories. The writing really shines in those sections. It seems like the author wanted to write a memoir but couldn't without more information. I didn't care for the writing style. It seemed very detached and matter of fact for most of the book and I couldn't connect emotionally to the characters. I finally found myself interested in the story when the action started.
It seemed so improbable and I thought for sure it was fiction after I looked up The Black Hand, but the author claims it's true. I learned a lot about crime and all the gritty details of life in New York in the early s but I just didn't really enjoy the story. It was too depressing. I'm colored by my own family's experience which was very positive. The characters in the story are a generation or two older closer to my great-great grandparents than my grandmother and my family settled in central Massachusetts.
My grandmother's family went from farmers to restaurant owners and much loved and respected members of the community.
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My grandfather's parents and grandparents probably would relate to Giovanna and her struggles a bit more. My family became almost fully Americanized but maintained allegiance to their traditional Neapolitan foods and went to Mass every Sunday.
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I had a hard time relating to Giovanna and Angelina at first. I come from a long line of strong Italian women who did what they had to do to survive and held their heads up. I don't see my great-grandmother or her mother collapsing like Giovanna. They got along without their husbands OK but I know my great-grandparents didn't marry for love and I doubt my great-great grandmother did either, so perhaps they would have reacted like Giovanna.
I liked Giovanna much better towards the end of the book when she pretended to be a strega witch. THAT I can see my ancestors doing. My great-grandmother's mother looks very formidable in the one and only picture we have of her. I liked Nunzio much more and felt bad for him that he was so looked down on because of where he was from. I didn't care for Rocco much at all.
Like his wife, I thought he was a bit stupid, but I also thought they were both stupid for letting it go so long. She should have at least told the lawyer. He would know which cops were crooked and if anything could be done. I didn't like Angelina in Anna's memories at first. Anna had the opposite relationship with her Nanny that I had with my Nonnie, I just couldn't believe her.
She didn't seem like any of the Italian Nonni I know. Once I found out what happened to her, I understood why she was like that. This book was just too dark and depressing for me. I'd like to see an uplifting story about an Italian immigrant family! Follow along in the comments section. View all 13 comments. I loved this book when I read it. I read it because of my genealogy research for my Sicilian side of the family. The family in this book is from Southern Italy,so it was close.
I loved the story of the immigrant ancestors and their struggle in the new world. The was a well researched fictional story based on the real lives of the authors ancestors. It was heart warming and bittersweet. Highly recommended if you have any Italian or Sicilian ancestors. What a wonderful book!!!
This book struck a chord with me. Elizabeth Street immediately caught my attention while reading the summary. A book about Italian immigrants and the challenges they faced when they got here? I'm half Italian American, so that means that half of my immigrant ancestors came from Italy — all of them on my mom's side.
And they all came during the time of the so-called Great Italian Migration. Unfortunately, none of my living Italian American relatives know much about my great-great gran This book struck a chord with me.
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Unfortunately, none of my living Italian American relatives know much about my great-great grandparents generation, not even what parts of Italy they came from! Through my own research, I've been able to track one great-great grandfather to a town in Southern Italy. My point is this: The street is famous as a retail shopping precinct, particularly for motorcycles and cameras. The street runs roughly north-south in-between Queen Street and Swanston Street. At the southern end the street terminates at Flinders Street Station , whilst the northern end terminates at Grattan Street , north of the Haymarket Roundabout.
This complex, high-traffic roundabout is further complicated by trams travelling through it on varying routes. Elizabeth Street is the lowest point in the Melbourne central business district, with land rising both to the east and west, and more gradually to the north. The street was built on top of a historic natural creek and has suffered numerous floods in Melbourne's history. Elizabeth Street is home to many historically important buildings, modern structures and works of art.
There are a large number of retail shops on Elizabeth Street, though perhaps most famously the street is home to a number of photography retailers and a considerable number of motorcycle dealers. The street has been the home of motorbike retailing in inner Melbourne since , the longest-existing such area in the world. As well as Flinders Street Station at the southern end, the western exit of Melbourne Central railway station is located at the intersection of Latrobe and Elizabeth Streets. A number of tram services run along the street, including route 19 trams to Coburg North , route 59 trams to Airport West and route 57 trams to West Maribyrnong.
Media related to Elizabeth Street at Wikimedia Commons.