Little Christmas - Softcover

Vito Gentile's prose, plays, and poetry weave humor and pathos, sometimes within a single sentence. He has been enthralling audiences and readers with decisive honesty for more than half a century. In Little Christmas Vito takes us on a delightful romp from a London park bench back to the Brooklyn of his childhood with his Italian/American family. For most people the aroma of pine symbolizes Christmas, for Vito it is oil-based paint because his father painted every room of their home before the holiday season began. His mother baked hundreds of cakes and breads to share with family and friends, and gifts were given to everyone who entered their home at Christmas. Along with his parents and six brothers and sisters, Christmas season was an exciting time in their home; a blend of Italian holiday traditions, religious devotion, and Santa Claus. And it didn't end until the Christmas tree was taken down on Little Christmas. Vito's keen sense of humor captured that era in memory, and that included his getting whacked for backing into fresh paint, opening a closet where Santa's gifts were hidden, and for finishing decorating the tree while everyone was sleeping. And those whacks didn't stop there. In Catholic school his curiosity brought more trouble and always seemed to dovetail with the Xs on his Santa's chart at home. How he managed to always have the greatest Christmas holiday of all is a wonder. What critics have said about his works: "If you don't recognize the characters here you have probably been hanging around the wrong people.... their ethnicity runs a distant second to their universality; their appeal is their humanity." New York Times. "An excellent study of Brooklyn Italian mores and character. It is apparent that he is familiar with his subject; the lines are real and quite funny and the characters are extremely well drawn. Gentile has created a small serio/comic gem.", Brooklyn Daily Bulletin.