EPISODE · Nov 3, 2025 · 34 MIN
Confessions of a Catholic School Survivor: Actress/Author Marianne Leone Has Range From The Sopranos to the Saints
from Up + Adam with Adam Montiel · host Adam Montiel
Today on Up+Adam, we’re joined by powerhouse actress and author Marianne Leone. You may know her as Joanne Moltisanti on The Sopranos, or from working with legendary directors like Martin Scorsese, John Sayles, and Nancy Savoca. But today, she’s with us as the author of one of the most irreverent, heartfelt, and hilarious novels to come my way in a long time. In this episode, Marianne opens up about her new book, Christina the Astonishing, a coming-of-age tale set in 1960s Boston where sainthood, sarcasm, immigrant grit, and Catholic guilt all collide. It’s fiction, yes, but it’s rooted in real truth, real grief, and real girlhood. Adam and Marianne go deep on what it means to write through pain, the sacred power of humor, and why rebellion can be holy when it comes from the heart. This one’s for the readers and the rebels, the mothers and the misfits, and for anyone who’s ever tried to be “good” in a world that made them feel wrong. • Get Christina the Astonishing: Buy on Amazon • Read Marianne’s memoir Knowing Jesse: Buy on Amazon • Visit Marianne Leone’s website: marianneleonecooper.com • Follow her on Instagram: @strega54 • Learn more about the Jesse Cooper Foundation: jessecooperfoundation.org ******** Listen to Up+Adam with Adam Montiel: Official Website: adammontiel.com Apple Podcasts: Up+Adam on Apple Podcasts Spotify: Up+Adam on Spotify iHeartRadio: Up+Adam on iHeartRadio YouTube Music: Up+Adam on YouTube Music ******** CHECK OUT OUR WOODS HUMANE PET OF THE WEEK! ******** ADAM’S TEDX VIDEO IS HERE! ******** FOLLOW ADAM ON INSTAGRAM ********* Sincere Thanks to the current supporters of Up + Adam. Please take a moment and visit them and thank them for supporting local broadcasting, and valuing what we do here. Thank you for supporting them! Life Elements City of SLO WoodsHumaneSociety Tin City Distillery Original Music by Dan Curcio and Moonshiner Collective Moonshiner on Spotify HERE Please Rate, Review, and Subscribe to the podcast, and learn more at AdamMontiel.com
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Confessions of a Catholic School Survivor: Actress/Author Marianne Leone Has Range From The Sopranos to the Saints
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