Two dear people wrote two awesome customer reviews for A Girl from You Know Where on Amazon.com these past few days.  I am so grateful for their thoughtfulness and consideration.  You can check them out directly on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Girl-Hill-Mothers-Journey-American/dp/1452569444/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1371084659&sr=1-1&keywords=a+girl+from+the+hill

or just take a read below – I do feel lucky.  Thanks kevinsmom and jovina!  Much love and gratitude to you both.

You Should Read This! – by kevinsmom

This is a small treasure of a book about a small treasure of a woman. Equally moving and funny, this series of essays chronicles the journey of Dahlia from a favored child to incredibly resilient adult. There are parts of Dahlia’s life that  will move you to tears (losing her mother at an early age, struggles with depression); and yet others that will make you laugh out loud. The details of how she and her husband met had me chuckling for days.
Her story is a great one. Luckily for all of us, one of her daughters decided to share it with us. Thankfully, Ms Mitchell has the writing skills to do her Mother’s story justice.  Take Dahlia’s journey with her. You’ll be so glad you did.

Understanding Your Roots – by jovina

Pat writes about her mother’s recollections of her life that began in 1924, the family dynamics and interactions through the years and the emotional growth of mother and daughter through it all. While this an indepth look at one family from Rhode Island, it is the story of many of us. I am a second generation Italian American, just as Pat is, and so many of her depictions of family members could very well be my family members. She describes these folks so well, that I can picture them in my mind and can think of my family members that they resemble. With their cultural inhibitions, “old world” philosophies and love of food and family, they represent perfectly all those Italians from long ago, who made that arduous journey from Italy to America and the toll it must have taken on these fine people in giving up their homeland for a totally strange, new place.

Pat writes with great insight about the motivations and characteristics of her family members. I loved where she said, “All the Fiore women I’ve ever known possess a sense of strength and martyrdom that eludes me. I can’t even pretend to imitate it.” Each chapter depicts a time during her mother’s life and the understanding Pat develops about her mother’s world and how different it was from the lives of women today. With that understanding comes acceptance and reverence for her mother. You will be fascinated by these mini stories, as I was, and with Pat’s intimate and revealing style of writing.