In the Land of the Midday Sun: An American Grandson's Search for his Southern Italian Roots

by John M Glionna

282 pages, Paperback

Published April 21, 2026

Reviews

[Jerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This memoir of a second generation Italian- American finding his Italianità via a sojourn to the birthplace of his grandfather in Pomarico, a small village in the sparsely populated region of Basilicata in southern Italy.

Meet the characters of his heritage as they parade through the book artfully described by John, il ciupudon, the big onion, as he is called in the local dialect.

Anyone who takes ancestral journeys to visit the homeland of their family will love this book as these experiences are universal. Of course, the highest benefit goes to us of Italian descent whose parents, grandparents, great grandparents who make that ancestral trip to answer the question, as John Glionna poses, "Who am I."

John will discuss his book on Friday, April 10, at 5 pm ET as part of the Brattleboro Literary Festial Literary Cocktail Hour. Visit the Festival's YouTube channel to view the recording https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCS4g...