When we were Strangers by Pamela Schoenewaldt

At 16,  Irma Vitale fears there is nothing for her in her small Italian village. But as her mother is dying,  she warns Irma that leaving the village would mean she would die among strangers.  Finally a few years later, Irma knows she must leave so embarks on a late 19th century immigrant journey.  Hoping to locate a brother who left years ago, she makes the hazardous ocean voyage to America with only her seamstress skills to support her. The search for the brother proves hopeless but, starting in the garment industry, she encounters both horror and the kindness of strangers in Cleveland, Chicago and eventually San Francisco where she finds an opportunity to use her intelligence and new found confidence.  Many of the details of this coming-of-age story were researched by the author in the village that Irma left which gives the story an authentic if a little melodramatic feel.  Book club members of a certain age would be able to compare Irma's story with stories told in their own family history.