The Queen of the Big Time: A Novel
From Publishers Weekly
Set in early 20th-century smalltown America, Trigiani’s fifth novel (after the Big Stone Gap trilogy and Lucia, Lucia) tells a heartfelt but clumsy story of strong women enduring the rigors of farm life and the trials of romantic and familial relations. At its worst, the novel is a morass of incomplete story lines, underdeveloped characters and inconsistent tenses. Still, readers who’ve fallen for Trigiani’s hallmark personages—Italian immigrants living the American dream in rural Pennsylvania—in previous books will delight in meeting these new ones. Nella Castelluca has brains and ambition; she hopes to someday become a teacher. Alas, when her father is injured at work, she must quit school and stay home to help on the family farm. Her first dream slips away, but working farm life turns out to be not so bad, and Nella eventually falls for the dreamy poet Renato Lanzara. But when he skips town, dream two is crushed, and Nella faces a tough reality: marry another man, and move on. Easier said than done, of course, and Trigiani spends the rest of the book drawing out the saga. Although the writing never rises above B-level, the novel does paint a thorough picture of Italian-American family life and the deep pain of lost love. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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Review
Praise for The Queen of the Big Time: “Moving and poignant . . . Trigiani has again defied categorization. She is more than a one-hit wonder, more than a Southern writer, more than a women’s novelist. She is an amazing young talent. ”–Richmond Times-Dispatch“A sweet story of growing up, marrying, and dying within the framework of family, love, and community. . . [The Queen of the Big Time] will make you smile and reminisce about gentler, more civil times in small-town and rural America. ”–The Boston Globe“Trigiani takes from her own heritage to craft a generous plot-driven novel that’s a breezy page-turner . . . ‘Queen’ offers a personal saga of American history and a romance woven together with warmth and good humor. ”–Oregonian “Full-bodied and elegantly written . . . Trigiani builds [The Queen of the Big Time] around an old-fashioned love story . . . Pure pleasure. ”–Washington Post Book World“Deaths lead to births, dreams deferred yield wondrous new visions [in The Queen of the Big Time] . . . intensely detailed characters. ”–Entertainment Weekly“Heartfelt . . . Readers who have fallen for Trigiani’s hallmark personages . . . in previous books will delight in meeting the new ones É [Paints] a thorough picture of Italian-American family life and the deep pain of lost love. ”–Publishers Weekly Praise for Adriana Trigiani and Lucia, Lucia“Trigiani’s writing is as dazzling as Lucia’s dresses. ”–USA Today“Fast-moving, funny, visual, and moving. . . A vibrant, loving, wistful portrait of a lost time and place. Every page is engrossing and begs us to read the next. ”–Richmond Times-Dispatch“Seamles. . .
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November 30th, 2009 at 7:18 am
This review is from: The Queen of the Big Time : A Novel (Hardcover)
Adriana Trigiani returns in her 5th novel, drawing us back to the charms of small town life, a rich Italian heritage and loyalty to family. In The Queen of the Big Time, Trigiani focuses on her central character Nella, who has dreams of attending college and becoming a teacher. Circumstances happen, however, that force Nella to work in the local blouse factory, destroying her dreams of furthering her education. The sparkle that remains however is her romance with the town heart throb Renato. Unfortunately, things are not to be with Renato and Trigiani takes us down an exciting and meaningful path with a colorful cast of characters and surprising twists and turns. As in her previous novels, Trigiani brings themes of personal dreams, her love for her Italian roots, love and romance, and deep insights into people of all dimensions. Picking up her novel is like picking up a conversation with an old friend. . immediately warm and inviting.
November 30th, 2009 at 7:28 am
This review is from: The Queen of the Big Time : A Novel (Hardcover)
I am not one of those women who reads any book that talks about “love” and swoons for days over how “romantic” it was. I find those thinly-written pulp-romance books tiring in their lack of an original plot. That is why i LOVE Adriana Trigiani! Her novels have just the PERFECT amount of romance, and an even more perfect amount of reality. Her books are gloriously engaging, full of richness and familiarity. They have far more depth than the “romantic” fluff that most of today’s books aimed at woman contain. I have loved each of her books more than the last. Her writing just keep getting better and better, and I am so excited to what she comes out with next. In my opinion, Queen of the Big Time is her best novel yet. I grew so attached to the characters, and cried my eyes out, and loved them so much, that i was torn between finishing the book as fast as i could, or savoring every page to stretch out my time with the Castellucas & Zollanos. Perfect. Just perfect.
November 30th, 2009 at 7:32 am
This review is from: The Queen of the Big Time : A Novel (Hardcover)
Loved this book ~ so eager for it to come out and I wasn’t dissapointed. Nella’s hopes of becoming a teacher go a different way as her help is needed to help support the family. You feel her longing to cultivate her education but understand the need her father has in asking for her to work. Nella falls deep in love with Renato but their fate is up to the reader to find out. A surprising twist lurks the reader in a different direction and Nella finds herself attracted to another man, Franco. This is a beautiful sweeping story that was good beginning to end. My only complaint would be that it covered a big chunk of time quickly but was good while it lasted. I look forward to more books by this author.