Poinsettia Girl: The Story of Agata della Pieta
By Jennifer Wizbowski
Publication Date: October 18th, 2025
Publisher: Historium Press
Pages: 336
Genre: Historical Fiction
Venice, 1710
Poinsettia Girl is based on the story of Agata de la Pieta, an orphan musician of the Ospedale de la Pieta.
Ten-year-old Agata's world is shaken at the sudden death of her mother. Left only with her egregious father, a working musician in Venice, her ailing grandmother sends her to the well-known orphanage, hidden from everything she's ever known.
Agata auditions for the conservatory style music school where music is both salvation and spectacle. Hidden behind ornate metal grates, adorned with poinsettias in their hair, the singers are veiled in mystery, their ethereal music drawing noble audiences, including gilded young men who see them as treasures-not only for their sound but as coveted marriage prizes.
Just as she reaches the height of her musical journey, a marriage proposal from someone outside the audience tempts her with the promise of a new life-a return to the old neighborhood she's longed for and a home she barely remembers. Torn between the music that has defined her and the hope of belonging to a family, Agata must confront the most profound question of her life: is her purpose rooted in the music that shaped her, or in the love that might free her?
Excerpt
Elena was struck by the cold, salty air against the water and the Lido perfectly displayed in the distance. She let the shoreline sky cleanse her, wading her conducting arms through the damp air. They sang a simple chant as they walked and made a half-circle with their backs to the water, close to the Prioress. A group of listeners stopped their errands as the rarely seen foundling girls alerted them with their song. It was uncommon for the public to interact with the young girls, their donations a luxury for those to later afford tickets when the gifted ones would perform in the Coro. Heads bent to whisper and fingers pointed in their direction. Elena hated that they were such a spectacle.
The young choir completed two songs as the Prioress led them west on the Riva Degli Schiavoni, nodding in thanks at those who put money in the small vessel she held. After singing several rounds of their first song, they came to the great columns of St. Mark’s Square. The crowds in the already busy square began to thicken. Elena kept her arms moving but was aware of the strangers encircling them.
Groups of men huddled and stopped their chatting at the sight of the virginal foundlings from the Pietà. Elena noticed the girls averting their eyes from the attention. She stood firm in front of them, motioning the girls to gather close, and directed them through another two songs in a simple two- part harmony.
Quite hastily, a gaunt man with long black hair pushed back by a white carnival mask on top of his head moved up to the front of the crowd. He had a strange familiarity about him, but something seemed off. Had she met this man before? Her eyes locked with Discrete Margarita, who offhandedly stepped in front of him. The other women, Discrete Orsa, Marcella Sovarizo, and Madonna, formed a square around the girls, all while exchanging glances. It was time to move.
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Poinsettia Girl
Jennifer Wizbowski
Jennifer Wizbowski spent her childhood days lost among the spines of her favorite books. Inspired by the daffodil fields of Wordsworth and the babbling brooks of Shakespeare, she earned her bachelor’s in English literature, a minor in music, and a secondary teaching credential, then wrote freelance for local business journals, taught in classrooms, and authored a Teen and Tween column for a parent magazine—all while raising her family.
As those years ended, she knew it was the right time to pursue her lifelong aspiration of bringing her own books to life. She now devotes herself to illuminating everyday women’s stories often lost in the shadows of history, revealing how they became heroines of their own time and place.
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Thanks for hosting Jennifer Wizbowski on your fabulous blog today, with an enticing excerpt from her evocative novel, Poinsettia Girl.
ReplyDeleteTake care,
Cathie xx
The Coffee Pot Book Club
You are more than welcome.
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