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John Addiego has published numerous stories and poems in literary journals and is a former poetry editor at the Northwest Review. Raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, he now lives with his wife, Ellen, and daughter, Emily, in Corvallis, Oregon, where he teaches students with special needs. He has published two novels with Unbridled Books and is currently working on his third.
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Fiction hardcover, 256 pages
October 2008
ISBN: 978-1-932961-54-6
The Islands of Divine Music is a novel of five generations of an Italian-American family finding its place in the New World. Against a backdrop of Immigration, Prohibition, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Vietnam War, and the new millennium, five generations of the Verbicaro family make their way from Southern Italy to San Francisco as each character brushes up against some aspect of the divine.
With The Islands of Divine Music, John Addiego achieves a deft and graceful balancing act -- a tender but unflinching fictional interface of pragmatism and passionate faith. As Addiego investigates the twentieth century American experience by way of southern Italian lore and Mexican mysticism, he delivers a novel that somehow manages to be both succinct and expansive, both grounded and otherworldly. I was moved and entertained by this truly original story.
Wally Lamb, author of She's Come Undone
Poignantly drawn ... Addiego's lyrical prose and eye for detail bring Rosari's family to life in a way that feels rich and multidimensional. Reflecting the significant events and social movements of the past century through the lives of the Verbicaros adds yet another layer to this satisfying saga.
The Oregonian
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Fiction hardcover, 400 pages
September 2010
ISBN: 978-1-60953-006-8
Tears of the Mountain chronicles a single day in one man's life -- July 4, 1876 -- along with a series of flashbacks that all lead up to an eventful Centennial Independence Day celebration in Sonoma, California. Over the course of this surprisingly pivotal moment in his life, Jeremiah McKinley prepares for the celebration and for a reunion with old friends and family.
[This] often fascinating novel combines the genres of sweeping epic, personal discovery, and murder mystery, all of which unfold in the course of a single day ... a worthwhile read.
Booklist
The cast of characters is fascinating, each one helping to move the tale forward. This character-driven novel is well-written with historically accurate information regarding California's early settlement, the Gold Rush, and the Bear Rebellion that led to adding the California territory to the United States. I found it intriguing how the author moved from a flashback chapter to July 4, 1876 by tying sentences together from one chapter to the next. This novel is difficult to put down; Addiego is a talented writer who has composed an exceptional story that will linger in my thoughts for some time. I look forward to reading his next book.
Historical Novels Review
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