"A living, breathing love song to the poet's heritage and the many ways it shaped the fierce and independent woman that she has become today." -Maria Mazziotti Gillan, American Book Award winner for All That Lies Between Us "Capone paints a vivid picture, whose themes of love and loss will resonate with many, as they are simultaneously both personal and universal." -Mary Saracino, novelist, poet, and memoir writer, author of Heretics: A Love Story In My Neighborhood is a lyrical, humorous, and provocative book documenting Giovanna Capone's search for a political and personal identity as an Italian-American raised in an old world traditional family, who later claims herself as a lesbian and a political activist. From beginning to end, through poetry, essay, and memoir, she explores her journey both emotionally and geographically, as she leaves the hub of her ethnic identity in New York, and enters the world beyond her childhood. Her writing is bound by a search for love, freedom, and ethnic identity, and also by her feminist politics and point of view. Her beloved heritage is an ever-present touchstone as she examines her roots and describes her adult life and developing consciousness.