Author Patricia Dunn used her experiences growing up in The Bronx as inspiration for Last Stop On the 6, and her authentic voice shines through to create an excellent novel about an Italian-American family living in Pelham Bay.

Angela Campanosi travels from Los Angeles to The Bronx so she can attend her estranged brother’s wedding. It’s her first time returning to her childhood home in 10 years. She brings along a giant pile of experiences and a number of standard East Coast tropes. The rest of the book unpeels assumptions and snap judgements to weave a compelling story.

Patricia Dunn calls her memories as a child in The Bronx her ghosts. It’s easy to see Angela wrestling with similar ghosts with mixed results. Some of her ghosts included imperfect memories and assumptions as Angela comes to terms with her adult realizations. Most of the characters have changed, but the biggest change ultimately is Angela.

Dunn did a wonderful job bringing The Bronx and the Campanosi extended family to life. I was drawn into the story by her vivid portrayal of the neighborhoods. Her dialogue is well-written, adding credibility to her characters by making the conversations as convoluted and messy as most families do. She admirably depicts her characters’ growth in a way that feels genuine.

Instead of contriving a happy ending, Dunn reminds us that family relationships are always a work in progress. She wraps up the loose ends of the plot while acknowledging that growing up requires a re-evaluation of relationships. After all, remember what happens when we ass-u-me.

I would like you to make one assumption - assume that you want to read Last Stop On the 6.

Thank you, Meryl Moss Media Group and Bordighera Press for providing an advance review copy of this excellent book. ( )

This book is one of the few books I've read this year that is going on my 'comfort book' shelf. These are the books that I periodically pull out to read to give myself a lift or soothe myself. This was also a quick read, one that you could probably do in a day or less. As an added bonus, if you have Kindle Unlimited it will be a book that you can read under the Unlimited rules.

This book is filled with what some may feel is inappropriate language. It is set against the backdrop of the start of the Gulf War. This book also deals with some very serious issues that may be hot buttons for some. Drug addiction, rape, and alcoholism, to name a few.

I loved this book tremendously! I don't know if this is because of my Italian heritage; well, Italian Hungarian (almost the same thing family-wise!!!)

This is a growth story, a story about what happens when we run away from our troubles and what happens when we lie and/or assume too much.

This story was funny, sad, exciting, and frustrating but primarily amusing. At least it was funny if you know anything about this type of Italian enclave.

I could visualize these characters without the author getting overly wordy. I could smell the gravy bubbling on the stove without a lot of descriptive terminologies. Instead, the author writes with a conciseness that I very much appreciate and love.

This is one of the best books I have read lately, and my kudos go out to the author.

*ARC was supplied by the publisher Bordighera Press, the author, and NetGalley. ( )

I loved this book. Don’t shy away from it because it takes place in “THE BRONX” or because it is about a Catholic family, and you are not Catholic. It could take place in any city, anywhere, and could be about anyone, so long as it is in an environment with a bustling life, nosy neighbors and lots of conflict and dysfunction! The characters could be interchangeable with characters of a multitude of backgrounds.
This novel is about the ordinary/extraordinary Campanosi family. The matriarch is skilled in the art of instilling guilt and love, both at the same time. She is well versed in the art of suffering, until she gets her way, that is; then she makes a miraculous recovery and no longer retires to languish on her bed. She is dominant, controlling and sometimes insufferable, but she is loved and respected. The patriarch, a sometimes-reformed alcoholic, is obsessed with making his son Jimmy a famous actor. It could be his ticket out of the Bronx. Jimmy, however, would rather play soccer. And then there is Billy, whom both parents embrace as their own when his life is torn asunder. He is the son and brother from another mother. Enter Mike, husband of the now divorced matriarch. He is a kind man and a fabulous cook who tolerates this odd combination of humans, including living with the sometimes-reformed drunk, ex-husband, too. The main character, Angela, is indomitable, though guilt ridden. She is a vegan, she is motivated to do good, to bring peace to a troubled world, but for ten years, she has run from herself. She is broke and wants to crawl out from under the shadow of her sibling. After her brother’s tragic accident which left him in a wheelchair, she ran toward the California dream her dad once had for him. When her mother invites her to her brother’s wedding, she is determined to be his savior again and to save him from making the mistake of marrying a woman, Julie, who is going off to war. She has not spoken to him for a decade, but true to herself, she jumps to her own conclusions believing she knows what is best, and she is determined to do her part. From California, she returns to “the” Bronx and with her, brings mayhem and madness. It will be impossible for a reader not to find a character, or some part of one, to identify with, and to recognize, as a part of themselves or their own family.
This is a story about family and what it means to be a part of one, in a magical place called “the” Bronx, beginning with a childhood world that is filled with challenges, and continuing up until the time of the first Gulf war, when additional challenges had to be faced. Told with the light hand of an author whose staccato sentences spill out with humor and insight, the novel is hard to put down. Still in spite of the wit, it also clearly presents the angst of family life, and life in general. Some of those moments are more apt to signal tears than laughter. What are the limits of family loyalty, guilt, devotion? How far should one go to escape shame or show love? All of these concepts and more are explored deftly as the characters come of age, even if it is a bit late in life. Who among us has not made a false assumption leading to faulty decisions which have altered the course of our lives? Who has not experienced grief, loss or any kind of tragedy? Who has not had a recalcitrant relative who was either unwilling or unable to reform their ways? Who was never bullied or abused? Who has not been against war and supportive of peace? Once, they were called flower children; today they are called activists or community organizers. There are none of us that can lay claim to a perfect life.
Nothing in this book is one dimensional. Do not be fooled. It is funny and a joy to read, but it also has profound messages. So pick up this book and walk down the memory lane of your own life or of your ancestors. You will not regret it. We have all walked some part of the way in Angela’s shoes or Jimmy’s or Mike’s or Billy’s or any of the others’ footwear. You will love this book, no matter where you hail from. Humanity lives large on every page.
“Last Stop on the 6”, takes place in a unique borough, the only one that that has an honorific in front of it, “the” Bronx”, but it could also have been Brooklyn, maybe even Queens or any other place that was thriving at the same time, that had that same kind of volcanic personality. The book was really nostalgic for me. I am from Brooklyn, and my husband is from the Bronx. My tennis racquet fell off the proverbial truck. Without that truck, I would not have learned to play tennis. Racquets were luxuries. We sat on stoops and consoled each other. We played pranks on people and played stickball in the street. Busybody ladies confiscated our balls when they went astray. My dad climbed to our roof, once a year, and rescued the balls that landed there, throwing them down to their “rightful” owners. My home was a two-family with a basement apartment making it an illegal three. One thing the author didn’t mention was tar beach. They were the apartment rooftops that everyone climbed to in order to cool off. Some slept on fire escapes. There was no universal air conditioning. People actually met outside and talked.
My husband and I beat the odds. We were considered G.U., geographically undesirable, but we courted and married. When I return to the area, I always go to Arthur Avenue, a haven for Italian culture. I could taste the bread, the pastries, the special olives and marvelous burrata when the author brought it up. The magnificent movie theaters, the elevated trains, they were all part of my life. I was my own brother’s savior, and for years, we too, did not speak. When Angela’s mom told her to marry a Jewish man because although he would cheat too, he would take better care of her, I remembered my husband telling me a story about a friend who wanted to go into business with him because he knew Jews were all successful in business. The stereotypes were rampant. The charm of the story and its characters is that they are totally, superlatively real! The story explodes with humor on every page. The dialogue is animated and alive, never boring. The novel is infused with so much humanity and reality, you will find your own self somewhere, on some page, as the characters touch your heart. Immerse yourself in it and enjoy. ( )

Review of eBook

It’s been ten years since Theresa Angela Campanosi left Pelham Bay for Venice Beach, California. Blaming herself for an accident that paralyzed her brother, Jimmy, she believed no one really wanted her to return. But her mother sends her a one-way ticket, telling her to come home for Jimmy’s wedding.

Will Angie, avowed anti-war activist, find a way to deal with the guilt, the secrets, and the eccentricities of her family if she goes home? And can you really ever go home again?

Families and friends and neighbors and superstitions and the place where you grew up all contribute to Angie’s trepidation as she returns to the Bronx after ten years away. Angie’s world, filled with assumptions and misunderstandings, has helped define her for a decade; now she’s discovering that “making it right” isn’t necessary and isn’t what’s expected of her when she returns home.

In a dysfunctional family that may not be as dysfunctional as everyone suspects, anything can . . . and does . . . happen, taking the reader on a journey into the heart of family love, acceptance, and complicated chaos. It is a truth that, in a neighborhood such as Angie’s, everyone knows everything about everyone else and, at the same time, everyone manages to keep his or her own secrets.

Filled with laugh-out-loud humor, unexpected revelations, and the kind of stuff that makes families family, the quirky yet heartfelt narrative is sure to resonate with readers. There are some Italian-American stereotypes and clichés within the telling of the tale, but Angie’s recrudescence is the one thing that promises to set her free from the onus of her peccability.

Readers will find much to appreciate in this story of family filled with foibles, accedence, and love.

Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this book from Meryl Moss Media Group ( )