The Roncarelli Case: Defiance in the Pursuit of Justice
In 1946, Montreal restaurateur Frank Roncarelli, an Italian immigrant from Bologna, did the unimaginable – he sued the most powerful man in Québec, populist Premier Maurice Duplessis. Roncarelli v. Duplessis wound its way through the Canadian legal system until it reached the Supreme Court of Canada in 1959. The court’s…
Women of Steel Project: Honoring Montreal’s Italian Textile and Garment Workers
The Women of Steel project pays tribute to the Italian immigrant women of Montreal’s first…
Will You Marry Me?
The car sped along New York Interstate 87, winding its way through the Adirondack Mountains,…
It’s 6:30 a.m. on a chilly fall day…
Gramma Stella was 14½ when her mother told…
“All of it?” Saverio asked again. “All of…
Félix Rose’s new documentary, La…
The resurrection of Dario Bellezza…
The Tablecloth
When I first moved out, Nonna Ida bought me a tablecloth with a blue-grey patchwork…
John Fante’s Full of Life, and the House of Un-American Activities Committee
Born in Denver, Colorado, in 1909, of an Italian immigrant father and an Italian-American mother,…
Le Bateau en état d’ébriété (1870)
– Après Arthur Rimbaud, pace John Thompson As I sluiced wild, homicidal channels, The pilot…
In Laura’s Uncovering, John Calabro Weaves a Tale of Two Eras
In Laura’s Uncovering (Ekstasis 2024), Toronto author John Calabro has crafted a historical romance set in two different eras, with…
Love and War in Genni Gunn’s The Cipher
With The Cipher (Signature Editions 2024, 239 p.), Genni Gunn has written a masterful work that captures the sacrifices of…
Delusions of Empire: A Review of Francesco Filippi’s But We Built Roads for Them
One of the ironies of the Italic-skippered “discoveries” of the Caribbean and the Americas, from the late 15th and to…
Between Curiosity and Imagination: In Conversation with Renée M. Sgroi
In a Tension of Leaves and Binding (Guernica 2024) is Renée M. Sgroi’s second collection of poetry. Her previous collection, life…
Living and Writing Between Two Worlds: In Conversation with Douglas Anthony Cooper
Douglas Anthony Cooper is not an author you will find anyone reading under a beach umbrella. His novels are structurally…
Queer Perspectives on Writing & Family: In Conversation with Christopher DiRaddo and Liana Cusmano
In this interview / conversation, authors Liana Cusmano and Christopher DiRaddo speak about their writing, family and Italian heritage. The…
Gino Quilico, the Man and the Artist
In her new book, An Opera in Three Acts Starring Gino Quilico (LLP, 2022), Connie Guzzo McParland chronicles the lives…
At a Loss – The Science and Art of Being a Hairstylist
Victor DiBenedetto has spent a lifetime discreetly making his customers look and feel their best. For nearly five decades, the…
But For Now We Stay Home
For our mammas! Francesca LoDico’s radio special, "But For Now We Stay Home,” is about her mamma coping with the…
To Market, To Market – the Mercato Experience in Italy
The Mercato is an Italian tradition that goes back centuries. Once a week, travelling vendors come to town, set up…
Where Italy’s Most Famous Are Buried
Every year millions of tourists visit the city of Florence and flock to the Uffizi Gallery for its extraordinary collection…
Dining With the Gods – A Travel Essay
After almost half a century living in Toronto’s Little Italy, I make a return journey to the place where I…
Ottawa’s “Village”
Cars, trucks, and heavy transports bustle down the busy thoroughfare known as Preston Street. A vital link between the city…
The Roncarelli Case: Defiance in the Pursuit of Justice
In 1946, Montreal restaurateur Frank Roncarelli, an Italian immigrant from Bologna, did the unimaginable – he sued the most powerful…
Fascism, Anti-Semitism, and the Italian Novel in California
As Italian Liberation Day approaches every April 25th, the editorial pages of Italy’s national newspapers reignite the national discourse over…
Letters of Introduction? Lear, Gissing and Douglas’s Travels to Calabria
For centuries, letters of introduction were considered almost as essential as passports for travelling within what is now Italy. A…
Giuseppe Musolino: Brigand King of Calabria
“He was the Robin Hood of Italy,” my mother said when she first showed me the tattered old book in…
Looming
“When we undertake the pilgrimage, it's not just to escape the tyranny at home but also to reach to the…
Pictures and Parades
There is this picture of me, taken at my first gay pride parade, that is one of my favourites. In…
The Son She Never Had
Luca inhaled deeply and then parked his cigarette in the ashtray. He turned to me, wearing a very decisive expression…
Sauce Making in Covid Times
So many of my ancient order have passed on, not from the Covid, but from the life. I have received…
Calabrese Nacatole: Byzantine Delights for the Holiday Season
As the festive season approaches, I think of my mom and her enigmatic smile, and how she diligently and lovingly…
Holiday Memories
Our holiday celebrations always began with Italian Christmas Eve fare: fish and seafood, and our regional specialty of polenta e baccalà. Around…
Mushrooms Like Paper-Thin Memories
Evenings on Prince Edward Island already smell like autumn. On the boardwalk at the end of each day the air…
Preserving Summer’s Latecomers
Forlorn, hopelessly hanging on, budding too late to reach their full glory, tarty green tomatoes are the latecomers of summer. Packed…
A Celebration of Italian-Canadian Voices
More than sixty writers of Italian heritage presented their work at the 19th Biennial Conference of the Association of Italian-Canadian…
Fallen Workers: How the Italian Community Found Its Voice Through Tragedy
International Day of Mourning takes place on April 28th to remember workers killed or injured in the workplace. At Toronto's…
Italian-Canadian Writers Gather in Torino for Biennial Conference
The Association of Italian-Canadian Writers (AICW) held its biennial conference at the University of Torino, in Torino, Italy, from September…
2021 Accenti Contests – Winners Announced
Montreal, May 16, 2021 – We are pleased to report the names of the winners of the 2021 Accenti…