Literary Nonfiction. "Told with artful artlessness, direct and unpretentious in manner, A TEAR AND A TEAR IN MY HEART is rooted in the particularities and pleasures of the local. Just the sort of human experience that is generally ignored in mainstream accounts. Bernard Bruno has written an original chapter in Italian-American history and culture."—Frank Lentricchia
"Like the oral histories collected by Studs Terkel in his books, the memories and tales assembled in Bernard J. Bruno's memoir, A TEAR AND A TEAR IN MY HEART, offer the reader an insider's view of Chicago as it was in days gone past. This is a street-smart book about the old neighborhood as it truly was, about its ward bosses and priests and popcorn sellers, its secrets and corruption and occasional moments of grace."—Tony Ardizzone