When Alesa sets off on a 500-mile pilgrimage across Spain known as the Camino de Santiago, she can't yet fully express why she would undertake such a challenging trek. All she knows is she needs to get far, far away from her pain and everything she knows ... an irretrievably broken marriage, a traumatic bout with cancer, a deep river of depression leaving her little desire to even continue living and isolating her further from her beloved teenage daughter. Desperate to reconcile her past and find meaning again, she sells her business and abandons her life for five weeks to walk the Camino with just a backpack and a prayer. Little did she know that something had to die on the journey in order for her to really live again.

The Wonder Years meets the Sopranos in this story that's based on the life of the author. It's the 1960's and Angela, and her mother and brother live in the Maverick Square Housing projects in East Boston. Times are tough for her single mom, and life in the projects serve as a colorful backdrop for an interesting childhood. Memories conjure up nostalgic images of the amusements at Revere Beach and The Enchanted Village at Jordan Marsh. But other memories include eating government surplus food, battling head lice and witnessing a summer tragedy that would be forever etched in her mind. In the predominantly Catholic neighborhood many of the Italian immigrant families sent their kids to parochial school where they were at the mercy of the cruel Sisters of Notre Dame nuns. Boomers, recovering Catholics, projects kids, and single moms will love looking back on all the games and traditions that went with city life. So grab yourself a nice spucky and a can of tonic and enjoy the read.