Chicago

This is the overall setting of most of the novel, and includes several specific settings. The city seems realistic, as it was in the 1940s. Frankie and other characters move about the various settings, including the orphanage, the shoe shop, the library, a bar, a diner, and the apartment where Frankie's father, stepmother, and siblings live. The weather, transportation, actions of the characters, and even fashions are all part of the setting.

Guardian Angels Orphanage

This is the orphanage where several of the characters grow up, including Frankie, Toni, Vito, Loretta, and Stella. The orphanage is a large, multi-storied building and the boys and girls are kept strictly separated. On the playground, there is a line that is meant to keep the boys and girls apart, though some of them occasionally risk punishment to briefly interact there. There is a church associated with the orphanage and the orphans...