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by Lucia Frangione (Author)
An unforgettable tale of healing and forgiveness When Graziana's violent stalker dies in a car crash, it kicks off a powerful catharsis, landing her in the psych ward. Her eight-year-old, Hazel, becomes the sudden new ward of grandpa "Grumpy" Herman. Willful and creative, Hazel is a handful for the conservative retired paramedic. Much to her chagrin, Herman is determined to get the neglected little Hazel back on track with her studies and her hygiene. Meanwhile, Grazie embarks on a necessary path to healing, slowly recovering her health and integrating back into society, working her way towards being able to mother again. With Herman's encouragement, Graziana pilgrimages back to Italy, her late mother's birthplace, to bike the Via Francigena. Meanwhile, Hazel's discovery of her father's identity propels her and "Grumpy" to go on a pilgrimage of their own. A gritty and spiritual story of transformation, forgiveness, accountability, and rebirth, Grazie takes us from Red Deer to Vancouver, from Medicine Hat to Rome, from the Amazon to Andromeda. Both violent and tender, Grazie examines what it means to feel connection to oneself, one's family, one's history, one's culture, and to existence itself.
Author Biography
Lucia Frangione is an internationally produced, award-winning playwright and actor. Grazie is her debut novel. She is the winner of the Sydney Risk playwriting award, the Gordon Armstrong playwriting award, the CAEA emerging artist award and the NY Unknown Country award, and she is among the top three on the Flannery List (as featured in American Magazine, October 5, 2021). Her thirty-three plays have been produced across Canada and in cities like London, Warsaw, San Diego, Boston, and Chicago. She is a member of ACTRA and CAEA. Lucia is currently working on a sequel to Grazie and is also developing a play called Danger to Self and Others with Touchstone Theatre. She lives in Vancouver with her husband and two children. www.luciafrangione.com
