“The year was 1910 when my grandfather immigrated from Italy and joined a Hell’s Kitchen mob soon after,” writes Silano. “In 1925, he met an innocent girl from New Jersey who wrongly crossed a legendary block in midtown Manhattan and wound up outside a speakeasy. They would marry, but the Great Depression, Pearl Harbor, and the ensuing War would change their lives forever.

“The story of her four daughters growing up in Brooklyn unfolds with equal measures of grace and tragedy, as life grants and takes away its greatest gifts over the years. The oldest daughter would marry first. Her husband would win the Silver Star for bravery during WWII, and his brother would come within one boxing match of challenging Joe Louis for the world title.