This ambitious first novel is given a near perfect interpretation by Sophie Amoss. Her appealing textured voice bonds us to the narrator, an otherwise rather opaque young employee at a Berkeley, California, bookstore. For months Gabriele, half-Italian herself, fills and ships esoteric book orders for a Signor Vietri in Rome. Ever more curious about his reading lists, she eventually lands in Rome herself and goes looking for her elderly customer. As a plot device, Gabriele's search provides scaffolding for exploring Italy's complicated history in Vietri's lifetime. Emotionally, the story is of Gabriele coming to understand her complicated relationship with her own Roman family. The task for Amoss is to keep us engaged with Gabriele, even when she's a mystery to herself. Amoss nails it. B.G. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine [Published: APRIL 2021]
Trade Ed. Harper Audio 2021
DD ISBN 9780063017733 $20.99
Get our FREE Newsletter and discover a world of audiobooks.
Let us recommend your next great audiobook!
No algorithms here!
We pick great audiobooks for you.
Sign up for our free newsletter with audiobook love from AudioFile editors.
If you are already with us, thank you! Just click X above.