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Tempting Faith Di Napoli
“Our house, in Little Italy, shared a wall with the Rossis’ next door, and our clothesline connected with the Pilettis’ behind us. My mother used to say that if one of the neighbours’ houses was swallowed up by hell, we would all be pulled down with them.”
Smart, witty, and emotionally generous, Tempting Faith DiNapoli is first-time novelist Lisa Gabriele’s alternately wrenching and funny coming-of-age story about a girl who is born with a powerful faith — a faith that is sorely tested across the difficult years of her childhood and adolescence.
Bewildered by her lot as the daughter in a fundamentally and often hilariously dysfunctional family, Faith genuinely wants to be a good Catholic girl. And she’s pretty sure Jesus loves her. Trouble is, she’s angry. Angry with her father for leaving, her mom for never going anywhere, and her siblings — just because they’re around. So Faith lies. She cheats and she steals. In fact, she breaks every commandment on the list, mostly by accident. And in the process, Faith finds herself increasingly torn between the girl she and Jesus want her to be, and the girl she just plain happens to be.
Lisa Gabriele writes with rare confidence and insight. Her sure-handed narrative hums along on the charged rhythms of Faith’s poignant quest for her own private happy ending. Charming, fresh, and big-hearted, Tempting Faith DiNapoli is a novel that will stay with readers long after the last page has been turned.
Smart, witty, and emotionally generous, Tempting Faith DiNapoli is first-time novelist Lisa Gabriele’s alternately wrenching and funny coming-of-age story about a girl who is born with a powerful faith — a faith that is sorely tested across the difficult years of her childhood and adolescence.
Bewildered by her lot as the daughter in a fundamentally and often hilariously dysfunctional family, Faith genuinely wants to be a good Catholic girl. And she’s pretty sure Jesus loves her. Trouble is, she’s angry. Angry with her father for leaving, her mom for never going anywhere, and her siblings — just because they’re around. So Faith lies. She cheats and she steals. In fact, she breaks every commandment on the list, mostly by accident. And in the process, Faith finds herself increasingly torn between the girl she and Jesus want her to be, and the girl she just plain happens to be.
Lisa Gabriele writes with rare confidence and insight. Her sure-handed narrative hums along on the charged rhythms of Faith’s poignant quest for her own private happy ending. Charming, fresh, and big-hearted, Tempting Faith DiNapoli is a novel that will stay with readers long after the last page has been turned.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2002
119 people want to read
About the author
Lisa Gabriele
6 books235 followersLisa Gabriele is an author, podcast producer and a award-winning TV producer. Her writing has appeared in Nerve, New York Magazine, Washington Post, The New York Times and the Magazine, Globe and Mail, National Post, Vice, Elle and Glamour. Her essays have appeared in several anthologies, including The Best American Non-Required Reading. She’s also the author of the international best-selling S.E.C.R.E.T. trilogy, under the pseudonym L. Marie Adeline, a series that’s been published in more than 30 countries.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
September 26, 2021
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Wie man in nicht ganz einfachen Verhältnissen erwachsen wird
Faith DiNapoli ist ein kanadisches Mädchen aus einer italienischstämmigen Arbeiterfamilie, die zusammen mit ihren drei Geschwistern bei ihren Eltern aufwächst. Die Mutter ist zunächst Hausfrau, der Vater arbeitet auf dem Bau. Zeitlich dürfte diese Geschichte irgendwann in den 1970ern beginnen.
Die Familie wohnt zunächst unter beengten Verhältnissen in der Stadt, versucht dann auf dem dem Land ein Haus zu bauen. Dieses Vorhaben scheitert jedoch aufgrund der Rezession und die Mutter zieht mit den vier Kindern zurück in die Stadt, während der Vater anfängt auf einer Ölplattform zu arbeiten.
Faith erzählt diese Geschichte als Ich-Erzählerin aus ihrer ganz eigenen Perspektive.
Die Familienverhältnisse sind nicht einfach, es gibt ökonomische Probleme und Faith vermisst ihren Vater. Da sie in ihrem Leben den Halt vermisst, den sie braucht, wendet sie sich stark dem katholischen Glauben zu. Wir begleiten Faith bis sie fast 18 ist und erleben eine Menge Höhen, aber auch erschreckende Tiefen mit ihr.
Mir hat dieser Jugendroman sehr gut gefallen und ich habe Faith als sehr authentisches junges Mächen empfunden, dessen emotionale Krämpfe ich zumeist gut nachvollziehen konnte.
Aus meiner Sicht empfehlenswert. Ich vergebe 4 Sterne.
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How to grow up in difficult circumstances
Faith DiNapoli is a Canadian girl from a working-class family of Italian descent who grows up with her parents and her three siblings. The mother is initially a housewife, the father works in construction. This story should begin sometime in the 1970s.
The family initially lived in cramped conditions in the city, then tried to build a house in the countryside. However, this project fails due to the recession and the mother moves back to the city with the four children, while the father starts working on an oil rig.
Faith tells this story as a first-person narrator from her very own perspective.
The family relationships are not easy, there are economic problems and Faith misses her father. Since she misses the support she needs in her life, she turns strongly to the Catholic faith. We accompany Faith until she is almost 18 and experience a lot of highs, but also terrifying lows with her.
I liked this YA novel very much and I found Faith to be a very authentic young girl, whose emotional cramps I was mostly able to understand well.
Recommended from my point of view. I assign it 4 stars.
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Wie man in nicht ganz einfachen Verhältnissen erwachsen wird
Faith DiNapoli ist ein kanadisches Mädchen aus einer italienischstämmigen Arbeiterfamilie, die zusammen mit ihren drei Geschwistern bei ihren Eltern aufwächst. Die Mutter ist zunächst Hausfrau, der Vater arbeitet auf dem Bau. Zeitlich dürfte diese Geschichte irgendwann in den 1970ern beginnen.
Die Familie wohnt zunächst unter beengten Verhältnissen in der Stadt, versucht dann auf dem dem Land ein Haus zu bauen. Dieses Vorhaben scheitert jedoch aufgrund der Rezession und die Mutter zieht mit den vier Kindern zurück in die Stadt, während der Vater anfängt auf einer Ölplattform zu arbeiten.
Faith erzählt diese Geschichte als Ich-Erzählerin aus ihrer ganz eigenen Perspektive.
Die Familienverhältnisse sind nicht einfach, es gibt ökonomische Probleme und Faith vermisst ihren Vater. Da sie in ihrem Leben den Halt vermisst, den sie braucht, wendet sie sich stark dem katholischen Glauben zu. Wir begleiten Faith bis sie fast 18 ist und erleben eine Menge Höhen, aber auch erschreckende Tiefen mit ihr.
Mir hat dieser Jugendroman sehr gut gefallen und ich habe Faith als sehr authentisches junges Mächen empfunden, dessen emotionale Krämpfe ich zumeist gut nachvollziehen konnte.
Aus meiner Sicht empfehlenswert. Ich vergebe 4 Sterne.
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How to grow up in difficult circumstances
Faith DiNapoli is a Canadian girl from a working-class family of Italian descent who grows up with her parents and her three siblings. The mother is initially a housewife, the father works in construction. This story should begin sometime in the 1970s.
The family initially lived in cramped conditions in the city, then tried to build a house in the countryside. However, this project fails due to the recession and the mother moves back to the city with the four children, while the father starts working on an oil rig.
Faith tells this story as a first-person narrator from her very own perspective.
The family relationships are not easy, there are economic problems and Faith misses her father. Since she misses the support she needs in her life, she turns strongly to the Catholic faith. We accompany Faith until she is almost 18 and experience a lot of highs, but also terrifying lows with her.
I liked this YA novel very much and I found Faith to be a very authentic young girl, whose emotional cramps I was mostly able to understand well.
Recommended from my point of view. I assign it 4 stars.
October 17, 2020
Loved this funny, tragic, sad story that sucked me in from page one. What a family; in spite of or maybe because of the "dysfunction", they were the most believable family I've read about in a long time.
January 10, 2023
Canadian coming of age novel set in Windsor. It depicts the struggles of a teenage pregnancy, subsequent marriage and young family. Growing up in the immigrant italian community.
2023 reading challenge-a book with a full name in the title
2023 reading challenge-a book with a full name in the title
December 16, 2019
Throughly enjoyed this book. All the characters, the story and their crazy journey of life. This one will definitely stay with me for awhile.
January 17, 2011
Sunday I spent all day reading (and finishing) tempting Faith DiNapoli by Lisa Gabriele. This is one of the best books I've read in a long time. I highly recommend it. Lisa is very funny. I saw her give an introduction to her work this summer, and she could be a wicked stand-up comic if she had the desire. You'll know the book by the candy-necklace-rosary on the cover.
The book is about Faith who grows up in an poor family during the recession...her father meets her mother at church...the children and the life in Little Italy come soon after.
Exerpt: I remember being small enough that the first things I saw when my mom entered the room were her dirty pink slippers. I got bigger and it was her knees, scabbed and puckered. Then bigger, and there's me grabbing her macramé belt and my little brother's hand as we'd scramble across a busy street because my mother was the type who never crossed at the lights.
Then, church became my measuring stick. At first I couldn't kneel, as I wouldn't be able to see Father Pete or the pretty hats. Then my chin fit perfectly over the back of the pew in front of me. Soon after, all the prayers and the songs were in my head, permanently, despite the fact that I don't remember anyone putting them there on purpose. I don't know how old I was when I realized I could not legally marry Jesus, but one day it, too, became something I knew for a fact.
The book is about Faith who grows up in an poor family during the recession...her father meets her mother at church...the children and the life in Little Italy come soon after.
Exerpt: I remember being small enough that the first things I saw when my mom entered the room were her dirty pink slippers. I got bigger and it was her knees, scabbed and puckered. Then bigger, and there's me grabbing her macramé belt and my little brother's hand as we'd scramble across a busy street because my mother was the type who never crossed at the lights.
Then, church became my measuring stick. At first I couldn't kneel, as I wouldn't be able to see Father Pete or the pretty hats. Then my chin fit perfectly over the back of the pew in front of me. Soon after, all the prayers and the songs were in my head, permanently, despite the fact that I don't remember anyone putting them there on purpose. I don't know how old I was when I realized I could not legally marry Jesus, but one day it, too, became something I knew for a fact.
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July 25, 20112005- I usually like coming of age tales, but this one didn't do much for me. Faith DiNapoli is the second child of four and the daughter of a father who speaks heavily accented English and a mother who chain-smokes, both of whom can not get along with each other. The inside of the book flap said we were supposed to be able to follow Faith's life from eight to eighteen, but most of the time I couldn't tell what age she was supposed to be. I think this was a combination of lots of flashbacks and the fact Faith never seemed to really grow up. Lots of secondary characters were thrown in who we were supposed to care about, while little was said about her actual family. I got bored. A lot.
February 9, 2013
Wow! The DiNapoli's are quite the family! They had me smiling, laughing out loud, and crying too. They truly seem to be a "real" family. Because I was raised Catholic, I can identify with Faith, her curiosities, her doubts and her questions. It brought back a whole bunch of memories, some good and some bad. But reading this book was a wonderful experience.
If you want to revisit your teenage years, this may be the book for you. But be warned it also deals with serious stuff, it deals with drugs, alcohol, rape and violence. I mention this because a friend's daughter asked to read it, she's 12, and I don't think it's appropriate for a tween. It could be just me...
If you want to revisit your teenage years, this may be the book for you. But be warned it also deals with serious stuff, it deals with drugs, alcohol, rape and violence. I mention this because a friend's daughter asked to read it, she's 12, and I don't think it's appropriate for a tween. It could be just me...
May 8, 2010
This book's author made me feel all the emotions of the narrator's voice, and she created a seamless transition in the voice as she grew. This is not a light or fluffy read and it was heavy at times. I felt the weight of the sadness and anxiety of the main character, sometimes carrying it with me and forgetting it was not mine.
If you don't like heavy language, this book is not the one for you. It does go to create the telling of the story and the perspective of poverty and lack of education.
If you don't like heavy language, this book is not the one for you. It does go to create the telling of the story and the perspective of poverty and lack of education.
September 18, 2009
Very well written and enjoyable, but also depressing. I wish most of the characters would have made better choices in their lives. The were caught up in lives that were going no where. There was some amusing black humor about her dysfunctional family though. A crazy nitpick: too much smoking! I hate it in books when characters are always smoking. It makes me think of cigarette smoke and I get grossed out, even though I'm not around it.
July 2, 2014
I picked up this book, after hearing it took place in Windsor and 'out in the county.'
I am glad that I read it. I thought it was a great book and even though I am not a religious person, I could relate to some of the feelings that Faith had.
I thought it was a realistic portrayal of a growing up tale, and I liked that it wasn't all glossy. It is a bit hard of a read, but I am sure there are some people that can read this and say, hey, that was my teenage life!
I am glad that I read it. I thought it was a great book and even though I am not a religious person, I could relate to some of the feelings that Faith had.
I thought it was a realistic portrayal of a growing up tale, and I liked that it wasn't all glossy. It is a bit hard of a read, but I am sure there are some people that can read this and say, hey, that was my teenage life!
March 9, 2008
I bought this for $1 off the the used book rack at the library and I easily would have paid full price for it in hardback!!! It's a realistic fiction of about surviving the trials and tribulations of growing up and finding yourself while resisting the urge to succumb to being the typical rebellious adolescent.
July 29, 2009
LOVED IT COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN!
September 22, 2010
a girl life from 8 to 18. set in sw ontario which is where i live. writing style and characters very interesting
April 22, 2011
The book's setting was Windsor, ON and Essex County in the 60s and 70s so it held alot of memories for me.
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August 9, 2011I thorougly enjoyed this book. Being raised in Catholic schools made the humor extremely witty. A fast read, but definitely a good one.
October 24, 2012
Awesome read by a local writer
February 7, 2013
I read this book because the author is a local writer. Thoroughly enjoyed the story and loved feeling the connection of the setting in my own home town and surrounding area. Made it a fun read.
June 21, 2015
Great recommendation and a must read! This book will always stay on my bookshelf as it's been a great book to read over and over again.
July 15, 2015
Review to come after Book Club meeting!
August 7, 2016
Couldn't get into it. Put it down after reading 85 pages
August 4, 2018
This novel is about struggle: struggling with faith, gender roles, pain and disappointment. It is also about struggling to find your own path.
January 13, 2008
Amazing...can't wait to read again :)
July 29, 2011
Hauntingly familiar...
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews