Gianni's oldest sister Tina of the Troy never said anything
about finding his way back home, because she feared "the brat" was stealing her
father's love from her and would reveal the secret she was hiding.
Would he tell everyone she liked the principal who helped John
Garfield get rid of his stammer and had gone out with a future middleweight
champ for six months before he would be sent to an upstate reform school for
bullying the people around Fordham Road?
When they were alone, she would shout things about his ears. She
told him they were as big as elephant ears and always - to make the image come
alive - she would fashion them from the air in big swoop-fulls with fingers
used for pinching.
"Big ears! Look at yourself - big ears! Why don't you
die and go away? Big ears!"
"What? What? What?" three year old Gianni would say; denying he
had any ears.