Yo Capeesh!: A Guide to Understanding Italian Americans

Yo Capeesh!!!! is a humorous, nostalgic, educational and sentimental guide to Italian Americana. It was written in a way that would appeal to many of the 25 million Italian Americans and those familiar with them. It is especially useful for those individuals smitten with the Italian American media. Using humor as its main focus, portions of the book are educational and can be used by all as a reference. It not only addresses Italian American heroes, songs and traditions but also phonetically and occasionally pictorially defines typical clichés, mannerisms, speech and food used in movies, TV and the stereotypical Italian American home. For those who are infatuated with the Mob, a chapter entitled How the boys say it explains many of the expressions and origins of organized crime vernacular. This chapter was included because of the somewhat crazed interest for this media genre and is sensitive to the majority of Italian Americans it does not represent. Briefly, Yo Capeesh!!!! is a whimsical, entertaining guide that has widespread appeal not only for Italian Americans but also for those who are interested in the allure and mystique of this unique and pervasive sub-culture.

Jim Caridi, M.D., is currently an Associate Professor of Interventional Radiology at the University of Florida. A third generation Italian American raised in New York, he credits much of his personal and professional success to multiple injections of heritage combined with a strong dose of humor.