The Good Left Undone

A Novel

By: Adriana Trigiani

Narrated by: Carlotta Brentan, Lisa Flanagan, Edoardo Ballerini, Deepti Gupta

Length: 13 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's summary

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.

©2022 Adriana Trigiani (P)2022 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“The Good Left Undone is deliciously told, with fully explored characters, mouthwatering descriptions of Italian food, and charming yet quirky towns. What’s exceptional about the novel is how seamlessly she knits together different sto­ries from many places and times, bringing it all together in one poignant and satisfying book. This is a gorgeously written story about inter­generational love and heartbreak, the futility of regret and the power of a life well lived. It’s also a love letter to Italy and its beautiful and pain­ful history.” —BookPage (starred)

“The beauty of any book by Adriana Trigiani is her ability to interweave life and fiction. This book is immersive, but it will also have you pausing to consider your own ancestors… or to seek them out. It’s a testimony to the power of family and history, to the value of understanding where we came from. This epic tale is at once real and hopeful, filled with adventure, and yes… stories. Don’t miss your chance to take this unforgettable journey with the Cabrelli women!” –Lisa Wingate, Book of the Month

"[A] captivating historical novel." —Bustle

A chaotic, rambling, bubbling mess of a story

I love the concept of the story. And I adore the details of Italian family and life.
But overall this was a hard listen. Firstly were the constantly changing narrators. Unusual use of a variety of readers. They didn’t change with characters, but randomly changed with chapters. As a listener, one subconsciously attempts to create correlations between the changing voices and the story- character? Location? But it just appears that the narrators were handed random chapters to read and then the audio book was knit together. It was very distracting.
Two of the narrators are among my favorites. But the narrator who started the book off was just horrible - flat, monotone, unbelievable.
The story line starts down one road and solidly navigates between two time periods. But about ten chapters in the author abandons the rhythm of telling the tale between current day and 1929 and just delivers the next dozen chapters in the 1929 plus period. It’s like we’ve forgotten about the other characters. Therefore when we suddenly return to the current day, it’s jarring and I actually forgot where we were with the present day story.
Altogether a novel that feels like it’s missed a final edit or maybe was an attempt at a unique story telling style. But missed.

Love at its finest.

Loved it. loved the characters and their stories. it was a little hard to follow with the jumping around in time

Familiar family story

In try Adriana Trigiani style she keeps your interest in the way she activates your senses. I enjoy her writing and story lines.

Marvelous

An amazing story with words that etch your soul and words draw pictures before you

Wonderful story

This book was so worth waiting for. The truth about the family is what society needs right now

Not my favorite

But ok to spend the time on , I got lost in the sea of names without faces.

I was so excited to read her new book…

I forced my way through the “too many” accents which should not be done if not done well or even good enough. The story moved around so often I could not catch rhythm. Too many stories in one novel. Pergola should have been a book of short stories. I was sad because I adore this author. And I love the male narrator in other books so very much. The female Italian accents were brutal. I am so sorry. It just wasn’t for my ears in any way.

Disappointing

As a fan of this author I thought I would enjoy the book much more.

Pretty good story

This isn’t my favorite Adriana Trigiani book, but I still enjoyed it. You’ll enjoy it if you like WW2 historical fiction.

Enjoyable Story Celebrating Family

I enjoyed listening to this rich history of an Italian family before, during, and after WWII. The author is an excellent storyteller and this story did not disappoint. It helped me to consider the impact on Italian families who were living abroad as WWII broke out. There are happy and sad moments but love for family triumphs in the end.