A gritty tragi-comic fairy tale of sexual obsession and longing, based in equal parts on the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice and the spaghetti westerns of Sergio Leone, Once Upon A Time In West Toronto is the story of outsiders reinventing themselves in Toronto's immigrant neighbourhoods from the 1970s to the present. It follows the adventures of Ida, an Italian proxy bride who came to Canada married a man she'd never met,, only to run off with his son; her lover, the brilliant ditch digger, Marcello; Bum Bum, a virtuous thief; and various hustlers, forgers and whores. A companion book to Terri Favro's award-winning novella, The Proxy Bride, the book uses historical events in Italy and Canada to create a fast-paced and entertaining read that is both heartrending and hilarious.

Terri Favro has been a winner and a shortlisted finalist in numerous literary competitions, including the CBC Creative Non-fiction Prize. Her work has appeared in numerous anthologies including Clockwork Canada, a Canadian Steampunk story collection. In 2014, she won the Accenti Magazine Award for short fiction, awarded at Montreal's Blue Metropolis Literary Festival. She is the author of an award-winning novella, The Proxy Bride, and the recent novel, Sputnik's Daughter. Her stories draw on her background in the Niagara region as the youngest child of an Italian family that loved science fiction, good wine, gadgetry, comic books, hot rods, daredevils and dark humour. Visit her blog at terrifavro.ca. She lives in Toronto.

Terri Favro's profile page

"A sinewy and sensuous modern tale complete with compelling characters--a few bad guys and several lost souls--a wonderful addition to the stories about Italian Canadians and the trials of immigration. Favro puts her writing gifts to great use here, holding up a mirror to the troublesome past and shining a light on the difficult truths with sharply skilled prose."
--Eufemia Fantetti, author of A Recipe For Disaster & Other Unlikely Tales of Love

"In Once Upon a Time in West Toronto, Terri Favro deftly weaves together multiple spellbinding narratives over the span of six decades, expertly covering the full spectrum of human experience from love and revenge, to loyalty, honour and forgiveness. Set during Toronto's coming of age--against the political backdrop of the rise of feminism and the immigrant experience-- Once Upon a Time in West Toronto is a novel filled with wry humour, unflinching honesty and unforgettable characters. Terri Favro is a wonderful story teller who knows how to wring every last drop of emotion from each sentence. Filled with action and suspense, as well as heartbreak and insight, this novel is a page-turning delight."
--Bianca Marais, author of Hum If You Don't Know The Words

"Ida and Marcello must run away from church, family, and the hoodlums that threaten their bodies and souls. Can they reinvent themselves and escape the bleakness of their respective pasts? Once Upon a Time in West Toronto is a hip, original take on the immigrant story, as well as a satisfying love story, a well told tale, and a slice of reality. Terri Favro's witty, supple prose is a discovery and a delight."
--Caterina Edwards, author of The Sicilian Wife

"Once Upon A Time in West Toronto is a story about the power of family; those we are born into and those we make. It is also a story about the power of place; the land we come from and the country we call home. But above all, it is a story about the irresistible, unrelenting, often treacherous and ultimately transformative power of love. It is one of those rare novels that manage to be simultaneously epic and intimate, romantic and violent, tragic and hopeful."
--Ian French (IF The Poet), Canadian Individual Poetry Slam Championship Winner and World Cup of Slam Poetry Finalist

"An utterly captivating and beautiful book. Ida, Marcello and Bum Bum's lives overlap, interconnect and tangle in a way that will have you exclaiming in delight and weeping in sorrow. Few writers capture the complex Catholic experience as masterfully as Terri Favro who paints a poignant picture of the complicated clash of religion and love. Mapping lives from 1969 to 2013, the story brings to life the women's rights movement of the '70s and the pain brought about by the AIDS in the 80s. The story is also a love story to Toronto's West End, and it is so wonderfully written that you can taste the Asagio cheese and smell the freshly ground espressos. Favro's writing is also so touching and funny that you will find yourself smiling at the originality of simile perfection and graceful metaphor. This book is like the perfect snow globe of so many lives; lives we have lived, lives we are living, or might have lived. Tragedy meets the redemption of the human spirit and, as we move from Venice to Shipman's Corner, from love to loss and back to love, we realize that, with all its ugliness and hardship, the world truly is a beautiful and mysterious place."
--Lisa de Nikolits, author of No Fury Like That

"Written like interlinked stories in a collection, Terri Favro's novel Once Upon a Time in West Toronto is a brilliant follow-up to her award-winning novella The Proxy Bride.This novel dives into the lives of the endearing Ida, Marcello and Bum Bum and vividly reveals their experiences of trying to redefine themselves from painful pasts to hopeful futures. Moments of joy and love collide with sadness and tragedy. With insight and boldness, Favro evokes the Italian experience from confessional boxes to the emotions accompanying new immigrants and the longing to move forward even when familial secrets and betrayals try to unravel new lives. Favro explores the themes of sexual desire, women's solidarity, and family obligation and weaves the reader through mystical and hypnotic passages. Honest, moving and gutsy, Favro's dazzling novel drifts between flashbacks and compelling present scenes, providing deep empathy for the unforgettable characters. Favro's craft and skill at storytelling shape Once Upon a Time in West Toronto into an engaging novel."
--Sonia Saikaley, author of A Samurai's Pink House