Product of Italy, Made in Canada — Rosanna Battigelli

In this creative non-fiction collection, award-winning teacher and author Rosanna Micelotta Battigelli depicts roles she has assumed over the decades after immigrating with her family to Canada when she was three. Rebelling at some of the handmade clothes she had to wear in her youth, spending time in hospital as her dad’s health fails, learning some life lessons from her students, and reflecting on the influences of her first language and culture as well as her pride in her adopted country, Battigelli shares these and other stories vividly. Whether navigating the choppy waters of family challenges and loss or recounting lighter moments, Battigelli writes with unflinching honesty, measured doses of humour, and with heart and spirit. The stories encapsulate the moments and incidents that have impacted her in various ways throughout her life, ways that ultimately helped shape her character and sensibilities as a daughter, sister, mother, teacher, and writer.