{"product_id":"it-takes-a-lifetime-to-learn-how-to-live-an-italian-american-story-of-coming-home","title":"It Takes a Lifetime to Learn How to Live: An Italian American story of coming home","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eIt Takes a Lifetime to Learn How to Live\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e is an intimate, multigenerational Italian American memoir immersed in the legacies of secrets, silence, and sacrifice of Southern Italy. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn 1915, Carmela leaves the remote village of Rotondella. Her daughter, Laura, grows up determined to sever the past in an effort to be fully American. But decades later, when her life collapses, Laura's daughter-the memoir's narrator-sets off alone to Italy in search of truth and belonging. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHer journey leads her back to her ancestral village, where she finds the open arms of family-and also uncovers the lingering shadows of the malocchio, omertà, rigid Catholicism, and a past of abject poverty, arranged marriage, patriarchal control, the Mafia, and a suspicion of sexual abuse. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eShe begins to understand how these forces shaped not only her grandmother's life, but also her mother's-and her own. By honoring the courage of the women who came before her, to risk and endure, she finds the grace to forgive, to heal, to make peace with her mother, and ultimately, to come home to herself.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e* * *\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eIt Takes a Lifetime to Learn How to Live\u003c\/em\u003e is a gift, not just to those with Italian roots, but to anyone who has ever wrestled with family history, loss, or the search for belonging. She reminds us that love, even when complicated, is what carries us through. Reading her story left me with a sense of connection to my past, to my community, and to the possibility of moving forward with hope. \u003c\/p\u003e-Pamela Dorazio Dean, \u003cem\u003e La Nostra Voce, \u003c\/em\u003eWE ARE ITALIAN AMERICA (October 2025)\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLibby Cataldi takes the reader on an epic journey, not only to remote Basilicata, but into the hearts and minds of the women who came before her. Armed with her pen and a desire to know the truth, Cataldi digs deep into the soul of Southern Italy and her family secrets to bring us an emotional and beautiful story.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cem\u003e-\u003c\/em\u003eHelene Stapinski, author of \u003cem\u003eMurder in Matera\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA gem of a book about family love, finding one's roots, and seeking redemption. This inspiring story of searching for \"home\" by traveling from Pittsburgh to a small, unheard of town in southern Italy is as enticing as the aromatic Italian tomato sauces Cataldi continually describes. Her journey to locate la famiglia will hearten all readers who have looked for love while wondering \"Where do I belong?\" \u003c\/p\u003e-Theresa Brown, New York Times' bestselling author of \u003cem\u003eThe Shift\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eHealing\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv style=\"display:none\"\u003eISBN-10: 1599542390\u003cbr\u003eISBN-13: 9781599542393\u003cbr\u003eAuthor: Cataldi, Libby, N\/A, N\/A\u003cbr\u003ePublisher: Bordighera Press\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Bordighera Press","offers":[{"title":"Paperback (Nov 2025)","offer_id":45659883307205,"sku":"9781599542393","price":20.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0708\/6414\/2533\/files\/9781599542393.jpg?v=1768915343","url":"https:\/\/www.inveni.store\/products\/it-takes-a-lifetime-to-learn-how-to-live-an-italian-american-story-of-coming-home","provider":"Inveni","version":"1.0","type":"link"}