Emily (BookHive (www.bookhive.org))
Without warning, a nine year old Jewish boy is given new shoes and put on a cargo ship by his mother that is destined for America. Once in New York, the boy changes his name to Dom and decides he will find a way to earn passage back to his home in Napoli and his family. Dom does random chores for a local store owner in order to earn a few oranges for food. Can Dom survive living in an alley? And what will he do when he encounters older homeless boys who seem to know much more about survival than he does? Will life on Mulberry Street get any easier or just more complicated as Dom befriends another boy who is working to pay off his own debts? Donna Jo Napoli does a great job of describing how difficult life could be in 1892 New York. Category: Adventure; Historical; Multicultural. Grade Level: Intermediate (4th-6th grade). 2005, Wendy Lamb Books. Ages 9 to 12.

Hazel Rochman (Booklist, Aug. 1, 2005 (Vol. 101, No. 22))
Drawing on her grandfather's experience, Napoli dramatizes a seldom-told bit of American history in this story of Italian Jewish young people in the 1890s. Beniamino, who lives in Napoli, is only nine years old when his beloved, poverty-stricken Mama bribes someone to hide him away on a cargo ship to America. His lively, immediate first-person narrative recalls the trauma of separation and the brutal struggle on the New York streets, where, renamed "Dom," he makes two Italian friends, and they start a business selling sandwiches. He keeps his Jewish identity secret, even as he tries to follow kosher rules. Always his dream is to return home. The characters are drawn with depth, especially the three kids, and the unsentimental story is honest about the grinding poverty and the prejudice among various immigrant groups. Most moving is the story of letting go, as Dom confronts the fact that Mama sent him away, and America is now his home. Connect this with Mary Auch's Ashes of Roses (2002), about Irish kids left alone in New York. Category: Books for Older Readers--Fiction. 2005, Random/Wendy Lamb, $15.95, $17.99. Gr. 6-9.

CCBC (Cooperative Children’s Book Center Choices, 2006)
In 1892, nine-year-old Dom becomes a stowaway aboard a ship sailing from Italy to America. All alone, Dom pines for his mother, who he is sure intended to travel with him but was unavoidably left behind. As a Jewish child stranded alone in New York City, Dom must scramble to find food and shelter. At the same time, he tries to avoid the dangers presented by the corrupt padroni, adults who provide immigrant boys with passage and basic necessities, and then force them to beg to pay off an inflated debt. In an alliance with two other street boys, Dom begins buying sandwiches, and then dividing and reselling them for a profit in the Wall Street area. Despite setbacks and hard lessons, the trio eventually develops a money-making business. At the same time, Dom must face the reality that his mother intentionally sent him off on his own, wanting to give him a better life, even if it meant a life without her. Donna Jo Napoli created Dom’s fictional story out of elements of her grandfathers’ experiences, as well as her research into the history of other young Italian immigrants. CCBC Category: Fiction for Children. 2005, Wendy Lamb Books / Random House, 245 pages, $15.95 and $17.99. Ages 10-14.

Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, October 1, 2005 (Vol. 73, No. 19))
This powerfully vivid story has the immediacy of Napoli's always-immaculate prose, coupled with a basis in family lore and urban history that make it irresistible. Nine-year-old Beniamino loves his mama, his family, his city of Napoli and all of its scents and sights. His mother puts him on a cargo ship to America without her, for reasons that he may not ever figure out, arming him with the parables of his Jewish and Napoletano heritage and a new pair of shoes. Renamed Dom Napoli at Ellis Island, he tells his first-person tale of survival, exploration and learning on the streets of lower Manhattan at the end of the 19th century. Careful and smart, Dom allies himself with a pair of boys, one under control of a vicious padrone, buying huge sandwiches and then reselling them, cut in parts, on Wall Street from a borrowed cart. From his first days sleeping in a barrel to teaching his widowed landlady to make his favorite foods, Dom's voice and presence make his life as real and as tangible as possible. History come to vibrant life for middle-grade readers and almost anyone whose ancestors came from foreign lands. (postscript) 2005, Wendy Lamb/Random, 224p, $15.95. Category: Historical fiction. Ages 9 to 14. Starred Review. © 2005 Kirkus Reviews/VNU eMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.

Sarah Applegate (Library Media Connection, January 2006)
After squeezing through sewers to earn a few cents and seeing a dead man's body floating in the filth, young Dom realizes that life is difficult for his family and country. A few days later, his mother dresses him up in his finest synagogue clothes without explanation and takes him to the docks. He thinks they are both sailing to America, but soon discovers that he is going alone. He arrives on Ellis Island and has to escape the "padrones," earn money, find safe places to sleep, and how to escape people who want to steal his shoes. With his quick mind and kind heart, Dom teams up with two other homeless boys. They discover that men in Wall Street will pay for sandwiches the boys buy, and bring to the corner, turning a handsome profit. With teamwork, they are able to save enough money to move into a rooming house. This is a fascinating story of history weaving into fiction. In the afterward, Napoli describes how she created the story using her own grandfather as a model. While she didn't know many details of his story, she was able to weave her research and her family history into a story that made me want to cheer. Despite the slow beginning, this was a satisfying read that will add to classroom work. Highly Recommended. 2005, Wendy Lamb Books (Random House), 256pp., $15.95 hc. Ages 11 to 16.

Hope Morrison (The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, February 2006 (Vol. 59, No. 6))
Nine-year-old Dom arrives in New York from Napoli, Italy, alone and ends up where most Napoletani arriving in New York in the late nineteenth century end up: Mulberry Street. After a rough start, Dom gains the friendship of Gaetano, a streetwise teenager, and Tin Pan Alley, a boy who plays the triangle for change and reports to a padrone, a boss who paid his ticket in exchange for his bound labor. Believing his mother accidentally missed the boat, Dom is determined to make some money and return to her in Napoli; fortunately, he’s got a head for commerce, and before long, the three boys are running a sandwich operation on a Wall Street corner. Business is lucrative, if dangerous, especially because Tin Pan Alley’s padrone could arrive at any minute and see that the boy isn’t playing his triangle; in the end, Tin Pan Alley runs away from the padrone only to be found and brutally beaten to death. Napoli’s novel, which is partly based upon the life of her own grandfather, offers a deftly layered depiction of a boy forced to grow up by circumstances beyond his control. Because the story is told from Dom’s point of view, many of the facts surrounding his departure are left obscured (as they would have been to Dom), but readers willing to wait for the picture to clear will find many rewards. The interplay of the three boy characters is especially effective; each is developed as a strong and distinctive individual who contributes to the storyline. The well-written ending deals effectively with both the tragedy of Tin Pan Alley’s death and Dom’s eventual acceptance that his mother intentionally sent him alone. Young people are likely to find this tale of youth survival both an empowering and enjoyable read. An author’s note explains the family history on which the story is based. Review Code: R -- Recommended. (c) Copyright 2006, The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. 2005, Lamb, 245p, $17.99 and $15.95. Grades 6-9.

Horn Book (The Horn Book Guide, Spring 2006)
Nine-year-old Beniamino's mother smuggles him aboard a ship bound for America. Following her instructions to survive, he hides his Jewish identity and name, becoming Dom Napoli and making his way to Manhattan's Five Points neighborhood. Before his tenth birthday, Dom is his own boss and has come to terms with his mother's sacrifice. This is a moving account of the immigrant experience. Category: Intermediate Fiction. 2005, Random/Lamb, 246pp, 15.95, 17.99. Ages 9 to 12. Rating: 2: Superior, well above average.

Virginia Bailey (The Lorgnette - Heart of Texas Reviews (Vol. 18, No. 4))
Donna Napoli based this touching story on family tales and on histories of Napoli and New York. Her grandfather, Domenico, came to America alone as a five-year-old stowaway and in time became a sandwich vendor. Dom in this story was put on a ship when he was nine by his mother who wanted him to have a better life in America. And he also became a sandwich vendor. Dom’s many struggles to survive on the streets of New York include avoiding being taken by a padrone and put to work stealing. Dom is against stealing and wants to make an honest living. The account of his ingenuity, integrity, and willingness to work hard, all virtues instilled in him by his mother and his grandmother, mirror the lives of many immigrants to America. The mixture of fact and fiction makes for a realistically told story. The themes of poverty, violence, hunger, and street life make this book more appropriate for older kids. This book is recommended for public and secondary school libraries. Fiction. Grades 6 and up. 2005, Wendy Lamb Books, 245p., $15.95. Ages 11 to 16.

Heather Pittman (VOYA, December 2005 (Vol. 28, No. 5))
The year is 1892, and Beniamino is nine years old when his mother smuggles him onto a cargo ship sailing from Italy to America. Armed with nothing but his grandmother's proverbs and a pair of new shoes, Beniamino arrives in New York determined to earn the money for passage back home. Beniamino, now known as Dom, struggles through Ellis Island and makes his way to Mulberry Street and other Italian immigrants. Dom's intelligence, determination and ability to make friends help him learn to make a living and get off the streets. This novel captures the essence of the American dream without sugarcoating the experiences of struggling immigrants. Dom comes to America with nothing, but he succeeds through hard work. The harsh realities of immigrant life are honestly portrayed. Dom goes hungry, sleeps in a barrel in an alley next to a dead dog, and is beaten and robbed. Death is commonplace and frequently brutal. Prejudice against and among the immigrants is rampant. Dom must disguise his Jewish background as well as the fact that he is illegitimate. Readers will be touched and saddened by this story of a young boy faced with the challenge of survival in a strange land. The stark description of the difficulty of life at this time is both compelling and disturbing. It is an excellent piece of historical fiction, particularly for readers with an interest in the era and the maturity to handle the bitter truths of Dom's experience. VOYA CODES: 4Q 3P J (Better than most, marred only by occasional lapses; Will appeal with pushing; Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9). 2005, Wendy Lamb Books/Random House, 224p., $15.95 and PLB $17.99. Ages 12 to 15.