Holiday Love and Madness:
Scenes
From My Italian
Childhood
 In my heartwarming book, Holiday Love and Madness: Scenes From
My Italian Childhood, I capture all of the joy and craziness of an Italian
family celebrating the holidays in 1960s and ‘70s New Jersey. Overflowing with nearly
400 photographs and an array of colorful anecdotes recounting my most treasured
childhood holiday memories, Holiday Love and Madness
take its readers back to a time when life was simpler and holidays were the essence
of family.
If you grew up during this time, then you probably had a mom (like mine) who was
a “stay-at-home” mom. She, like many woman of her day, had more free time
to spend on special things like decorating our home. Consequently, our home
was always festooned for just about every holiday. Perhaps my mom, who truly
enjoyed decorating…which has become a family tradition…may have displayed a bit
more than the average mom (which would explain the vast amount of decorations we
had). I can still remember vividly those spooky-looking Halloween cutouts…the
classic scary images that have become sought-after pieces of art. Or the now
rare Thanksgiving cutouts of Pilgrims, Indians and turkeys that looked so realistic.
And what about those Valentine cutouts, with whimsical illustrations, or Easter
décor that depicted a time when we all got dressed up for this wonderful holiday?
Thankfully, I have preserved many of these decorations and feature them in the pages
of this book, along with interesting histories about well-known American die-cut
and party supply manufacturers such as The Beistle Company, and the Dennison Manufacturing
Company, that will surely satisfy the collectible aficionado.
In fact, as a holiday memorabilia collector myself, my original intent was to publish
a holiday collectibles book to share my pastime. As I wrote, I noticed that my own
collection of vintage decorations and memorabilia seemed to become a colorful backdrop
for my memories.
My book takes you on a nostalgic journey, recounting ageless holiday memories of
a time when neighborhoods were so safe children could play outside and even trick-or-treat
door-to-door.
Lastly, I hope to help all of us to remember the ‘good old days’ of our lives!
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