Christopher CastellaniRecensioni

A long-winded, tedious book covering several time periods, involving some well-off literary people, mostly gay men, whose lifestyles of promiscuity, drugs and alcohol make them dull, two-dimensional, and entirely forgettable.

The author has woven together real historical characters (about whom I knew nothing) with some fictional ones. I gather it was thoroughly researched and that fact blends well with fiction. But there's not much story. Some of the descriptive passages are quite well done and a couple of scenes came to life, but on the whole, I struggled to keep reading.

If it hadn't been this month's book club read, I would have given up after the first chapter. Possibly I should have done so - most of the others in the book group felt the same, and didn't get past the half-way mark.

Not recommended.

Longer review here: https://suesbookreviews.blogspot.com/2022/03/leading-men-by-christopher-castella...

A clever fictional recreation of the events in the lives of a group of famous characters and artists in the mid twentieth-century. At once an intimate romance and story set in an artistic world that is both wittily and lovingly portrayed. I enjoyed the structure with its well-wrought prose.The main characters include both familiar and unfamiliar artists, all of whom were interesting to this reader.½

A brief look at perspective highlighting some interesting examples from some fantastic authors. There isn't a lot of specific knowledge imparted, but what is there is well reinforced with examples.

Set in 1953 in a tight- Italian neighborhood in Wilmington, Delaware, Saint of Lost Things is the story of Maddalena Piccinelli Grasso, who was introduced in A Kiss From Maddelena. Seven years after the end of the first book, we find Maddelena, now married to Anthony and recovering from a miscarriage which almost cost her life. She's moved into a resignation about her life and her future. It seems that although she loves Anthony she desperately misses the Italian homeland she left against her will seven years ago. I thought the immigrant theme was portrayed very realistically for the time period. So many immigrants sacrificed so much to come to America but then lived in neighborhoods with people of their own culture. They deeply resented any influx of outsiders and this book attempts to show that in a fair way. The dreams of the people, the racial tensions, the rivalry between immigrant groups, and the overall closeness of the neighborhood all seem realistic. Maddalena eventually makes a friend, a man named Julian, whose immigrant story we also become a part of.

Overall I enjoyed the story. I had no idea this was the second part of a trilogy and didn't read the first book. I don't feel that had any impact because each of the three books take places years apart. I understand the final book of the trilogy, All This Talk of Love, is available and takes place fifty years after the first. I recommend The Saint of Lost Things for people who are interested in the Italian immigrant experience and American life in the 1950s.

I’ve known nothing of Tennessee Williams prior to reading this novel, and Castellani creates an honest character out of him. The real stars of the novel are Frank Merlo, who defers dreams to be Williams companion, and the fictional Anja, who compliments him so well. This book felt like a vacation, and I read it on vacation, although some of the scene in Italy went on a tad long. Tissues for the ending.

I hated to do it, but I had to put the book down at page 239. It could have been earlier, or later. I just didn't connect.

I did like this though, concerning Frank Merlo, Tennessee Williams' lover, "If Frank could not be the fountain, he could at least feel the spray" and "the pleasures of proximity" to celebrity.

The titular Leading Men are Tennessee Williams, Frank Merlo, John (Jack) Horne Burns, and Sandro Nencini, with appearances by Truman Capote and Jack Dunphy, and two entirely fictional characters: Anja Blomgren (Bloom) and Sandrino, Sandro's son. But the book belongs mainly to Frank and to Anja.

The characters come together in Portofino, Italy, in the early 1950s; Tenn and Frank meet Jack and Sandro at a party at Truman Capote's house, and Anja and her mother Bitte as well. Their lives become somewhat messily entertwined, with Anja accompanying Tenn and Frank, who say they will help her get "discovered," and Sandro calling Frank back to help him manage Jack, who dies from alcoholism and heatstroke.

Closer to the present, Frank waits in Memorial hospital in New York for Tenn to visit him one last time as he's dying of lung cancer; Tenn sends Anja a final, secret manuscript; Sandrino seeks out Anja; and at last, Tenn's final play is staged.

A very good book in the category of historical fiction that takes real people as its characters. For me, it did not have that immersive, page-turning quality, but I think it was a case of wrong book at the wrong time; I would still recommend to those who like this genre.

Quotes

He was afraid that once you gave something a name, it would turn on you. (38)

If you cannot see the struggle in a thing, its intricate craftsmanship, the precious irretrievable hours it stole from a person's life, how can you determine its value? (Anja, 61)

"Of all the desires, curiosity is the only one capable of keeping a person alive." (Anja, 63)

If you didn't have your own life force, no one could lend you his. (Frank, 84)

"Because I find the leading lady transcendent and her director imperious to the point of nausea?"
"Yes. Because - I'm sorry to say it - she is a Garbo knockoff and he is famously, undeniably magnetic." (Anja and Tenn, 178)

"Such relief, for just a moment, it's as sweet as love." (Tenn in Call It Joy, 208)

"We tell you love because what we know it's what you want to hear."
"It's the anger." (Anna and Anja re: secret ingredient in pasta sauce, to Frank, 238)

Frank had yet to develop an armor against the sudden ache for him that overtook him at moments like this, when his absence felt less like a habit than an affliction. (Frank, 243)

How many lives could a person lead at one time, and how did you keep them from crashing into each other? (Frank, 252)

Tenn was always looking for trouble....Something was always wrong. Something was always about to go wrong. Something that seemed right couldn't possibly be all right. (271)

...she feels the relief that comes when possibilities are taken away. (334)½

This book was ground breaking for me in many ways. The structure was brilliant, but more than that was the rendering of the relationships - so difficult to define with societal lexicon - which suffered because there was no acceptable construct. There was so much love and caring between Frank and Tennessee and between Frank and Anja, but because these relationships were outside the norm, they were terribly vulnerable and subject to uproar. Never before have I read and empathized with characters who faced such exclusion from what was mainstream with regard to legitimizing relationships. Living in the shadow of a great artist, Frank Merlo won my heart. I truly rooted for him and in the end wept for him.

Besides providing an incredible lens into undefinable relationships there was the extreme fun of being in post war Italy and gaining a glimpse into the private lives (and social lives) of people like Tennessee Williams and Truman Capote. The insertion of screen play and and the alternating time lines (something I really love) made this book different, ambitious, and hard to put down. I can't wait to discuss it with other readers.

Sad and beautiful.

I struggled to get into this novel. While I enjoyed learning about Tennessee Williams, Frank Merlo, and his personal life, plus a number of appearances by other famous mid-century figures like Truman Capote, I never felt like the characters remained distant and their actions unclear. Overall, I felt like a great sadness hung over much of this novel, from the aging actress to Frank's untimely death and Tennessee Williams' substance abuse. Everything felt tragic, without much of the joy these characters must have experienced at some point in their lives. The novel was interesting, but I wonder if I could have gotten more out of a biography of Tennessee Williams than this book.

This is a really well done, atmospheric journey with some familiar faces. Castellani takes the reader and immerses them in a bucolic setting and strong characters.

Free review copy.

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.

If you are a writer, get this book ASAP. Castellani is brilliant and this book is a serious gem for any writer looking to understand point of view and writing perspective.

Set in 1953 in a tight- Italian neighborhood in Wilmington, Delaware, Saint of Lost Things is the story of Maddalena Piccinelli Grasso, who was introduced in A Kiss From Maddelena. Seven years after the end of the first book, we find Maddelena, now married to Anthony and recovering from a miscarriage which almost cost her life. She's moved into a resignation about her life and her future. It seems that although she loves Anthony she desperately misses the Italian homeland she left against her will seven years ago. I thought the immigrant theme was portrayed very realistically for the time period. So many immigrants sacrificed so much to come to America but then lived in neighborhoods with people of their own culture. They deeply resented any influx of outsiders and this book attempts to show that in a fair way. The dreams of the people, the racial tensions, the rivalry between immigrant groups, and the overall closeness of the neighborhood all seem realistic. Maddalena eventually makes a friend, a man named Julian, whose immigrant story we also become a part of.

Overall I enjoyed the story. I had no idea this was the second part of a trilogy and didn't read the first book. I don't feel that had any impact because each of the three books take places years apart. I understand the final book of the trilogy, All This Talk of Love, is available and takes place fifty years after the first. I recommend The Saint of Lost Things for people who are interested in the Italian immigrant experience and American life in the 1950s.

I have not yet read this book because it was only after I received it that I learned that it was the 3rd book in a trilogy and I can't read books out of order so I'm trying to catch up. I didn't intend on adding 3 books to my ever growing TBR list. I'll get there!

seriously depressing! It would have helped to know that there were 2 books before this in the series!½

I was never really able to work up much interest for this book. It sounded like it was going to be a good book but it really just fell flat. I couldn't find one character in this book that I related to or felt that was likeable. Also it felt like nothing really kept the plot together. It felt like a bunch of wandering around going nowhere. Most of the time I was just wondering what the point of this was. I would not recommend this book.

Very good book. My life was hectic so it was a bit getting into it, but thoroughly enjoyable.The writing was well-done, the descriptions vivid, and the plot interesting.

Not quite so excellent as A Kiss From Maddelena, but kept me happy to spend time with these characters.

This story is about an Italian immigrant family. Told within that cultural context it is a wonderful insight into how these immigrants struggled to make it in the New World while also wanting to become a part of the US.

They are proud of their culture and language, but at the same time they all learn English and the American way of life. They work very hard at becoming Americans and obtaining the status that that brings. I borrowed this one from the library, but I might buy a copy and add it to my library.

I received this book as part of the Early Reviewer program. It's also the third in a triology, which wasn't mentioned prior to receiving the book, and had I known that, it probably would have made a lot more sense. This story is an exploration into the lives and culture of an Italian family.

I was surprised that some people loved this book so much. Maybe it just isn't my taste to enjoy books who don't have much of a plot other than interactions between people. I also found the characters in this book to be more annoying than interesting.

Maddalena and Antonio Grasso, married for fifty years, are Italian immigrants living in America . Not once have they returned to their village of Santa Cecilia to visit. Maddalena never opened the mail she received from her family. She closed the door on that part of her life. All This Talk of Love by Christopher Castellani is an in depth depiction of the Grasso family.
The Grasso's had three children, two sons and a daughter. Their first son, Tony, committed suicide. The Grasso's are a close family. Son Frankie calls Maddalena nightly to discuss the soap opera they both watch. Daughter Prima wants the entire family to go to Italy, in part to reunite Maddalena with her sister, and for Prima's sons to connect with their heritage. Even though Prima had already made all the trip arrangements Maddalena vehemently opposes the trip and refuses to go. The trip is canceled, but not because of Maddalena. Eventually, Antonio decides the trip must be made and he, Maddalena, Prima, Frankie and his girl friend travel to Santa Cecilia. It is there that the family meets both their past and their future.
This is a phenomenal, moving and powerful story. While the heart of story is family, the author eloquently gives voice to the protagonists as they try to maintain their individualities. The prose allows the reader to journey into the minds of the characters. Every member of the Grasso family views love differently. No matter. Their strength is in their mutual loyalty. The Grasso family is struck with many of same blows other families endure. It is their bond that enables them to cope with loss and the uncertainty it brings. The Grasso's are truly a family. I recommend reading this book- it is a novel that will stay with the reader for a long time.

I received this book free of charge through LibraryThing Early Reviewers and I give this review of my own free will.

All This Talk of Love is the story of an Italian-American family, the Grassos and their ties to each other and to their ancestral home in Italy. The main characters are Maddalena and Antonio, the immigrants, and their two children, Prima and Frankie. The narrative moves from character to character as the family deals with aging parents, passing on the family business, and the baggage each has stemming from the parents’ sense of loss associated with immigration, the early loss of son/brother Tony, and the usual sibling issues. The story loosely revolves around Prima’s desire to get her parents to go back to their home town before they are too old, and Maddalena’s initially inexplicable refusal to consider a return. As life and Maddalena interfere with Prima’s plans, we learn more about what brought the Grassos to the US, what happened to Tony, and how these events are tied to the issues that the family is dealing with, mostly without realizing it.

Castellani is a very able writer, and the prose is quite a pleasure. All This Talk is an enjoyable trip into the dynamics of a first generation immigrant family, and the unfolding of the back-stories adds some mystery to keep the plot rolling. The characters are a bit annoying at times, much like my own family, but believable for this reason. The story begins and ends in the middle of life, and, as in life, doesn’t wrap all the issues up into nice packages. When all is said and done, the reader has learned a bit about this family, and some of what is learned will be quite familiar. This is an enjoyable read, but I was left without a character that I felt I would miss. Upon completion, I quite liked the book and figured it for a 4-star rating. But a few weeks later, as I considered writing this review, I realized I retained only a vague memory of an enjoyable read, but recalled little of the 'meat' of the story.

Os.½

All This Talk of Love is the story of a first and second generation Italian immigrant family, who emigrated to the U.S. in the years following WWII. I was not aware that it was the third in a trilogy until after I had received it. As others have written, the theme of the book covers various permutations of love: romantic, parental, filial, and self-serving.

The main characters include Maddelena, the matriarch of the family who has a close (symbiotic?) relationship with her adult children: daughter Prima, and son Frankie. Over the course of the story hints are dropped about another son, Tony, who died in his teens. These clues are scattered like bread crumbs through the narrative until his story is revealed.

The patriarch in the family is Antonio who, with his brother, established a successful Italian restaurant.in Delaware. IMO he is the only character that exhibits an authentic, selfless love for his family. The women in this book drove me crazy with their manipulation and guilt trips to try and keep their kids under their thumb. Prima does it with her four boys. Presumably she learned this at her mother's knee because these two really do a number on each other.

The plot line revolves around a reunion trip to the family's village of origin, Santa Cecilia. This is engineered by Prima, and is thwarted for several years by Madelenna who has no desire to return. By the time they get there, it is anti-climactic.

Some readers may identify with this family and love the characters and the story line. However, it was not to my taste and felt like the internal family struggles and manipulations were annoying, dishonest, and self-serving. There were times when I thought the author could have shortened the title to "All This Talk...." because most of the love certainly seemed to be conditional.

I received this book as an Early Reviewers selection.½

From November 2005 School Library Journal:
It is 1953 and Maddalena Grasso is newly arrived in the United States, trying to make sense of the unfamiliar language, strange customs, and her place in her new extended family. Her husband, Antonio, is a perpetually dissatisfied man who yearns after the American Dream: shiny new car, new home, and children. Having convinced the beautiful Maddalena to marry him and leave her family behind, he now watches over her jealously and becomes ever more frustrated over his inability to acquire all the outward trappings of success to which he feels entitled. He feels a mixture of contempt and jealousy for his brother Mario, who seems perfectly happy with his average wife, his nondescript daughters, and his job managing someone else’s restaurant. While Maddalena tries to keep Antonio grounded in the simpler joys of the life they share, his childhood friend Renato, adventurous and single, lures him on with promises of easy riches.
Maddalena befriends a middle-aged single man who has recently lost both his parents. Giulio Fabbri is drifting through life, trying to overcome his feelings of purposelessness. As his friendship with Maddalena and the Grasso family deepens, Giulio comes to understand himself and his dreams better, and realizes that he must take risks if he is ever going to be more than an observer of life.
Threading through the various relationships are undercurrents of racial tension. An African-American family moves into the predominantly Italian neighborhood, and the community reacts with ugliness and prejudice. The presence of Abraham Waters and his family seems to be a personal affront to the residents of “Little Italy.” Maddalena, Antonio, and Giulio each interact with Abraham Waters in markedly different ways, and these differences are very telling in how they handle life’s disappointments and surprises in general. With The Saint of Lost Things, Christopher Castellani has crafted a lyrical and elegant novel that goes beyond an Italian-American community in the middle of the twentieth century. His character portraits are finely drawn and he has a keen eye for the subtle dramas of family and friendship.