The Good Left Undone
A Novel
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4.3 • 426 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
"[An] immersive saga. . . . A celebration of family and a paean to the power of storytelling.”—People, "Book of the Week"
"Trigiani conveys the beauty of Italy, the hardships of war, the taste of family recipes, and the enduring love of family."—Library Journal (starred)
“The beauty of any book by Adriana Trigiani is her ability to interweave life and fiction. . . . Don’t miss your chance to take this unforgettable journey with the Cabrelli women!” —Lisa Wingate, Book of the Month
From “a master of visual and palpable detail” (The Washington Post), comes a lush, immersive novel about three generations of Tuscan artisans with one remarkable secret. Epic in scope and resplendent with the glorious themes of identity and belonging, The Good Left Undone unfolds in breathtaking turns.
Matelda, the Cabrelli family’s matriarch, has always been brusque and opinionated. Now, as she faces the end of her life, she is determined to share a long-held secret with her family about her own mother’s great love story: with her childhood friend, Silvio, and with dashing Scottish sea captain John Lawrie McVicars, the father Matelda never knew. . . .
In the halcyon past, Domenica Cabrelli thrives in the coastal town of Viareggio until her beloved home becomes unsafe when Italy teeters on the brink of World War II. Her journey takes her from the rocky shores of Marseille to the mystical beauty of Scotland to the dangers of wartime Liverpool—where Italian Scots are imprisoned without cause—as Domenica experiences love, loss, and grief while she longs for home. A hundred years later, her daughter, Matelda, and her granddaughter, Anina, face the same big questions about life and their family’s legacy, while Matelda contemplates what is worth fighting for. But Matelda is running out of time, and the two timelines intersect and weave together in unexpected and heartbreaking ways that lead the family to shocking revelations and, ultimately, redemption.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Love, perseverance, and self-discovery shade every page of this multigenerational historical romance. Matelda Cabrelli Roffo is celebrating her 81st birthday in a quaint seaside Italian village. Her granddaughter Anina—who is about to get married—pays her a visit and receives some treasured family heirlooms along with precious untold stories about her mother, a nurse named Domenica. From the kindhearted nuns who befriend her while she’s working in a French hospital to the handsome Scotsman who steals her heart to her World War II experiences, every aspect of Domenica’s story is captivating. Author Adriana Trigiani does an amazing job showing us how Anina is affected by her mother’s personal history, which leads her to contemplate just what she wants out of life and marriage. The Good Left Undone is a sweeping, exciting story full of hardship and the sage wisdom that comes from it.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This sweeping epic from Trigiani (Tony's Wife) follows three generations of the Tuscan Cabrelli clan as they deal with war, heartbreak, and family secrets. Octogenarian Matelda Roffo, knowing her days are numbered, reveals to her children and grandchildren the truth about her mother Domenica's seldom-discussed first marriage to the Scottish sea captain John Lawrie McVicars. Flashback to 1939 when Domenica, while practicing as a nurse, recommends birth control to a patient, angering a local priest who forces her to leave her hometown. She ends up working at a hospital in France, where she meets McVicars while treating his neck wounds. The looming war takes McVicars away, but the two run into each other in Glasgow, Scotland, a year later and decide to marry. Tragedy strikes and Domenica returns to Tuscany to make a life for herself and her newborn Matelda. In the present, Matelda's revelations send ripples across the family and change the trajectory of her granddaughter's life. Some of the many subplots about minor characters distract from the emotional core of the story, but Trigiani's lush descriptions and trademark acute attention to family dynamics more than compensate. This saga of family and legacy is one to savor. Suzanne Gluck, William Morris Endeavor.
Customer Reviews
Entertaining
Good story but went on a little too long. However a good read
The Good Undone
Difficult to follow the characters from one time period to another. Kept getting confused.
Good story telling with likable characters.History of WWII, interesting.
Liked all of it.