Three Rivers Home

by Lara Brenckle Malmont Three Rivers Home is a story of siblings, sacrifices, and what it means to truly belong. Set against the backdrop of early 20th-century Pittsburgh, it traces the fate of Francesco "Frankie" Fortunato, his sister Maria, and his brother Joey, as their Italian immigrant parents' American dream buckles beneath the strain of illness and poverty. With no family left to care for them, Frankie and Joey join the ranks of Allegheny County's "farmed out" children–dependent or delinquent juveniles rented to agriculture and industry for $5.60 a week. Despite the unconventional arrangement, Frankie finds peace and stability with his foster parents, Ethel and Raymond Collins. When it shatters on a salacious case of alleged murder and sexual assault, he's pulled into a media maelstrom that threatens to destroy his future. As the clock ticks down to Frankie's sixteenth birthday – the day he ages out of county care – he must decide: abandon his younger brother and their shared promise to stay together or architect the liberation that finally brings them home. Page Count: Est. 300 Trim Size: 6 x 9 Publish Date: February 3, 2026 Imprint: Milford House Genre: Historical FICTION / Historical / 20th Century / General  FICTION / Family Life / Siblings  FICTION / Cultural Heritage