The acclaimed actress and author of Jesse: A Mother’s Story tells the story of her outspoken, frequently outrageous Italian immigrant mother. Marianne Leone’s Ma is in many senses a larger-than-life character, one who might be capable, even from the afterlife, of shattering expectations. Born on a farm in Italy, Linda finds her way to the United States under dark circumstances, having escaped a forced marriage to a much older man, and marries a good Italian boy. She never has full command of English, especially when questioned by authorities, and when she is suddenly widowed with three young children, she has few options. To her daughter’s horror and misery, she becomes the school lunch lady. Ma Speaks Up is a record of growing up on the wrong side of the tracks, with the wrong family, in the wrong religion. Though Marianne’s girlhood is flooded with shame, it’s equally packed with adventure, love, great cooking, and, above all, humor. The extremely premature birth of Marianne’s beloved son, Jesse, bonds mother and daughter in ways she couldn’t have imagined. The stories she tells will speak to anyone who has struggled with outsider status in any form and, of course, to mothers and their blemished, cherished girls.

Ma Speaks Up: And a First-Generation Daughter Talks Back

Biographies & Memoirs

Leone, Marianne

Community & Culture

Beacon Press

Humor & Entertainment

Jesse Cooper was an honor-roll student who loved to windsurf and write poetry. He also had severe cerebral palsy and was quadriplegic, unable to speak, and wracked by seizures. He died suddenly at age seventeen. In fiercely honest, surprisingly funny, and sometimes heartbreaking prose, Jesse’s mother, Marianne Leone, chronicles her transformation by the remarkable life and untimely death of her child. An unforgettable memoir of joy, grief, and triumph, Knowing Jesse unlocks the secret of unconditional love and speaks to all families who strive to do right by their children.

Knowing Jesse: A Mother's Story of Grief, Grace, and Everyday Bliss

Simon&Schuster

Jesse Cooper was an honor-roll student who loved to windsurf and write poetry. He also had severe cerebral palsy and was quadriplegic, unable to speak, and wracked by seizures. He died suddenly at age seventeen. In fiercely honest, surprisingly funny, and sometimes heartbreaking prose, Jesse's mother, Marianne Leone, chronicles her transformation by the remarkable life and untimely death of her child. An unforgettable memoir of joy, grief, and triumph, Knowing Jesse unlocks the secret of unconditional love and speaks to all families who strive to do right by their children.

Jesse: A Mother's Story

Marianne Leone's Ma is in many senses a larger than life character who shatters expectations (and glass picture frames). Born on a farm in Italy, Linda finds her way to the U.S. under dark circumstances. She never has full command of English, especially when questioned by authorities, and when she is suddenly widowed with three young children, she has few options. To her daughter's horror and misery, she becomes the school lunch lady. Ma Speaks Up is a record of growing up on the wrong side of the tracks, with the wrong family, in the wrong religion. Though Marianne's girlhood is flooded with shame, it's equally packed with adventure, love, great cooking, and above all humor. The stories she tells will speak to anyone who has struggled with outsider status in any form, and of course to mothers and their blemished, cherished, girls.

Dreamscape Media

Five-Dog Epiphany: How a Quintet of Badass Bichons Retrieved Our Joy

Gracie Belle

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Leone, Marianne. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Leone, Marianne

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Leone, Marianne. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Ma Speaks Up: And a First-Generation Daughter Talks Back

Ma Speaks Up: And a First-Generation Daughter Talks Back

Knowing Jesse: A Mother's Story of Grief, Grace, and Everyday Bliss

Jesse: A Mother's Story

Ma Speaks Up: And a First-Generation Daughter Talks Back

Five-Dog Epiphany: How a Quintet of Badass Bichons Retrieved Our Joy