39 pages • 1 hour read
Elvira WoodruffThe Orphan of Ellis Island
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 1997A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 25-28Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 25 Summary
Francesco is sad to be separated from Violetta. Father Tomaso promised Francesco that he’d take good care of his goat. Francesco, Antonio, and Dominic wave goodbye with hundreds of others as they depart Italy.
Chapter 26 Summary
The boys go to the ship’s lower level, where the third-class passengers sleep. The bunk beds are filthy, and everyone is crowded together. The journey is extremely unpleasant. Storms at sea force them to stay inside where the smell is overwhelming. Dominic realizes that he’s not returning to the America he knows and that he can’t predict what America in 1908 will be like.
Chapter 27 Summary
Francesco and Antonio come up with dreams for their future in America. Francesco wants to be a father and name his first-born son after Salvatore. The voyage continues as people get hungrier and sicker. When they hear news of their imminent approach to America, Francesco and Antonio change into their clean shirts. They have a third clean shirt that should have been Salvatore’s. They give the shirt to Dominic, and he is grateful and proud.
