Son of Italy (36) (Picas series)

The only reprint since its publication in 1924, this impassioned memoir of the often fruitless labors of an Italian immigrant in America describes the harsh, inhumane working conditions that immigrants had to endure at the beginning of the 20th century. Interested in more than material success in America, Pascal D'Angelo quit working as a laborer to become a poet. He began submitting his poetry to some of America's most prestigious literary and cultural journals; he finally succeeded. But in his quest for acceptance, D'Angelo unwittingly exposed the complexities of assimilation. Like the writing of many other immigrant workers at the time, this autobiography is a critique of some of the era's most important social themes.