Lucia, Lucia

By: Adriana Trigiani

Narrated by: Mira Sorvino

Length: 5 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's Summary

Lucia, Lucia is the enthralling story of a passionate, determined young woman whose decision to follow her heart changes her life forever.

Lucia Sartori is the beautiful twenty-five-year-old daughter of a prosperous Italian grocer in Greenwich Village. The postwar boom is ripe with opportunities for talented girls with ambition, and Lucia becomes an apprentice to an up-and-coming designer at chic B. Altman's department store on Fifth Avenue. Engaged to her childhood sweetheart, the steadfast Dante DeMartino, Lucia is torn when she meets a handsome stranger who promises a life of uptown luxury that career girls like her only read about in the society pages. Forced to choose between duty to her family and her own dreams, Lucia finds herself in the midst of a sizzling scandal in which secrets are revealed, her beloved career is jeopardized, and the Sartoris' honor is tested.

Lucia is surrounded by richly drawn New York characters, including her best friend, the quick-witted fashion protigi Ruth Kaspian; their boss, Delmarr, B. Altman's head designer and glamorous man-about-town; her devoted brothers, Roberto, Orlando, Angelo, and Exodus, self-appointed protectors of the jewel of the family; and her doting father, Antonio. Filled with the warmth and humor that have earned Adriana Trigiani hundreds of thousands of devoted readers with her Big Stone Gap trilogy, Lucia, Lucia also bursts with a New York sensibility that shows the depth and range of this beloved author. As richly detailed as the couture garments Lucia sews, as emotional as the bonds in her big Italian family, it is the story of one woman who believes that in a world brimming with so much promise, she can, and should be able to, have it all.

©2003 Adriana Trigiani; (P)2003 Random House Inc., Random House Audio, a Division of Random House Inc.

Critic Reviews

"Delightfully quirky...chock-full of engaging, oddball characters and unexpected plot twists." (People)
"As comforting as a mug of chamomile tea on a rainy Sunday." (The New York Times Book Review)
"This is an engaging, well-told tale." (Publishers Weekly)

The black sheep's review

I feel like the black sheep... but I didn't find this book as great as the other people who reviewed it did...

I gave it three stars nonetheless because it features a fluid plot, easy and pleasant, however I just can't get into the storyline, even if Mira Sorvino did a fantastic job by narrating it(especially in the parts when she cried).
This book with an obvious cutsy and superficial plot was trying so hard to earn depth and emotion but it just didn't make it into my heart...
At first I was mad that I had accidentally purchased the abridged version but in the end i was glad because I don't think I would have been able to enjoy much more of it.

A piece of advice: looking for a light and fresh reading? Go for "The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants" or even better, if you prefer something deeper "The Secret Life of Bees" <--- a very spiritual book that still has me thinking about life and destiny...

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Enthralling

I couldn't turn it off and was sad when it ended. So well written I felt as if I knew the characters personally. The reader did a fantastic job.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Lucia Lucia

This was a very good book from start to finish.Lucia and her family had so many things happen to them.Lucia was stood up at the alter,
her father died,and her mother fell an hit her head and ended up in the hospital.I was going to work this morning listening to this book as I drove the car, and had tears falling down my face.Very good book.Would be listening to books all day long if all of them were this good.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Great summer listening!

Entertaining and enlightening look at life for young women in the 1950's. Great time-passer, safe for family listening!

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Excellent story - didn't want it to end!

I very much enjoyed this audio book. What I like best is the richness of the story. The author does an excellent job connecting readers to her characters. I didn't want the story to end!

I have to admit it took a while to get used to the narrator. She happens to be one of the best actresses around but I thought she did a mediocre job at narrating. Once I got used to her style, I was able to tune out the "stiffness" of her voice and concentrate on the story.

I would love to see a follow-on to this book, maybe Lucia's life after her 20's??

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Too romantic

I really enjoyed Big Stone Gap, but this just had too much romance - gone wrong. Adequate for passing the time, but that's it.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Wonderful listen

Would you consider the audio edition of Lucia, Lucia to be better than the print version?

I really enjoyed this book. It was a great portrait of 1950s New York. It made me long for the old days of big department stores. I loved the parts about the custom shop and the details about the couture work they did.Lucia's story was well told and Mira did a great job narrating.

Which character – as performed by Mira Sorvino – was your favorite?

Lucia, of course.

Kind of brutal

The story was okay, but the reading by Mira Sorvino was so flat it was hard to believe that she has an Academy Award! I usually love almost anything I buy, but this one hurt.

A decent beach/vacation listen

Found the story and the characters engaging. However, I wish it wasn't narrated by Mira Sorvino. She was speed reading. It was annoying at first.

But, the story is good enough to pass the time.

Lucia,Lucia

Excellent! Even had my husband laughing on our roadtrip back from NYC.