{"id":1316,"date":"2013-06-04T14:59:12","date_gmt":"2013-06-04T12:59:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rickzullo.com\/?p=1316"},"modified":"2021-11-12T21:54:41","modified_gmt":"2021-11-12T20:54:41","slug":"books-about-italy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/books-about-italy\/","title":{"rendered":"A Review of Books about Italy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Books about Italy<\/h1>\n

For foreigners who love Italia<\/em>, reading books about Italy is the next best thing to being there.\u00a0 They inform us and inspire us at the same time, and our imagination does the rest.\u00a0 Perhaps for Americans in particular, since our history is so \u201cbrief\u201d and two-dimensional, Italy provides an endless landscape for discovery\u2014not only from region to region, but also from century to century.
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If you read my blog, then you know that I always strive to take a realistic view of life in Italy.\u00a0 There are plenty of others out there circulating \u201cthe fantasy,\u201d but I believe that Italy is plenty interesting without all of that nonsense. \u00a0 And less predictable. \u00a0 I try to avoid the stereotypes, although I\u2019m aware that they\u2019re sometimes unavoidable.\u00a0 I also appreciate a little humor, especially when it\u2019s directed inward.\u00a0 So this survey will be short on lyrical memoirs and re-styled versions of La Dolce Vita<\/i>.\u00a0 If you want that, then watch a (Hollywood) movie instead.\u00a0 That fantasy is lovely, if it\u2019s what you\u2019re in the mood for.\u00a0 But if you want real, informed opinions, a bit of satirical wit, and a healthy measure of accurate historical background, check out some of these titles.<\/p>\n

Good Italy, Bad Italy by Bill Emmott<\/strong><\/p>\n

I read this one a few months ago after seeing the documentary, \u201cGirlfriend in a Coma,\u201d in which the author of this book was the narrator and co-writer.\u00a0 The book is a little dry, as is the movie, in my opinion. But it stands as the most up to date survey of the current state of Italy\u2019s politics and economics.<\/p>\n

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Good Italy, Bad Italy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Mr. Emmott\u2019s book largely recounts the cascade of mistakes, bad judgment, and outright corruption that brought Italian politics and economics to its present dismal condition.\u00a0 He also attempts to highlight some examples of \u201cGood Italy,\u201d as he calls it, by citing such accomplishments as judicial reform in Torino and the anti-mafia movement in Sicily.\u00a0 But on balance he does little to hide his pessimism for Italy\u2019s future.\u00a0 Emmott seems to relish his role as an enemy of Silvio Berlusconi and the chronicler of his ultimate demise (which of course hasn\u2019t come to pass yet).<\/p>\n

Not the most stimulating journalism that I\u2019ve ever read, but worth the effort if you are truly interested in the plight of Italy today.<\/p>\n

The Italians by Luigi Barzini<\/strong><\/p>\n

The most recent edition was published in 1996, but the original is from 1964.\u00a0 One would think that the material would be a bit dated, but change occurs very slowly in Italy and therefore this classic look at Italians by an Italian remains extremely relevant today.\u00a0 In fact, it\u2019s a much better read, with a more poetic, philosophical perspective, than Mr. Emmott\u2019s book that I mentioned above.\u00a0 However Barzini\u2019s book was written before the era of Craxi, Tangentopoli, and of course, Berlusconi, so it misses this crucial period of recent developments.\u00a0 Still, for the self-professed Italophile foreigner who is curious enough to challenge their rose-colored view of the Bel Paese<\/i>, this book is the place to start.\u00a0 I read this book ten years ago and it remains my favorite.\u00a0 It\u2019s insightful, honest, and balanced.<\/p>\n

La Bella Figura: A Field Guide to the Italian Mind by Beppe Severgnini<\/strong><\/p>\n

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La Bella Figura<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A lighter take on the Italian mentality by a modern day journalist from Milan.\u00a0 In my opinion, nothing quite makes a point as accurately as humorous anecdotes\u2014and this book is full of them.\u00a0 Even as a foreigner who is still trying to figure out Italians, these observations strike me as spot-on.\u00a0 As I read this book, I sensed myself constantly nodding in agreement.\u00a0 And since it\u2019s an Italian mocking his own country\u2019s stereotypes, I felt less guilty about laughing along.\u00a0 It\u2019s notable that this book begins with a quote from the aforementioned Barzini, \u201cBeing honest with oneself is the highest form of patriotism.\u201d\u00a0 (It wouldn\u2019t hurt for us Americans to remember that, either.)<\/p>\n

Even some of the chapter titles are hilarious and oh-so-true. \u201cThe airport, where we discover that Italians prefer exceptions to rules.\u201d \u00a0\u201cThe highway, or the psychopathology of the stoplight.\u201d<\/p>\n

A vacationer wouldn\u2019t likely notice some of these subtleties, but anyone who has actually lived in Italy, even for a short time, knows exactly what he\u2019s talking about.<\/p>\n

Saving Italy: The Race to Rescue a Nation’s Treasures from the Nazis by Robert M. Edsel<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

I haven\u2019t read this one yet, but I will.\u00a0 I read the Monuments Men several years ago, and that book has inspired a movie now being produced and directed by Italy\u2019s favorite American, George Clooney.\u00a0 I\u2019m not even sure that this book belongs on my list, but it\u2019s just too good of a story to omit. The truth is always stranger than fiction.<\/p>\n

From the book description of Saving Italy<\/i>: \u201cWhen Hitler\u2019s armies occupied Italy in 1943, they also seized control of mankind\u2019s greatest cultural treasures.\u00a0 On the eve of the Allied invasion, General Eisenhower empowered a new kind of soldier to protect these historic riches. In May 1944 two unlikely American heroes\u2014artist Deane Keller and scholar Fred Hartt\u2014embarked from Naples on the treasure hunt of a lifetime, tracking billions of dollars of missing art, including works by Michelangelo, Donatello, Titian, Caravaggio, and Botticelli.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re interested in this particular era of history, you can also check out the book and documentary, The Rape of Europa.<\/p>\n

Rome: A Cultural, Visual, and Personal History by Robert Hughs<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Rome<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This book covers the Eternal City from its first foundations to Fascism in the span of 500 pages\u2014no small feat.\u00a0 The author, by necessity, glosses over certain eras and topics, but in general this is a fully developed timeline of Rome\u2019s rich past.\u00a0 Hughs does much better with art and architecture than he does with historical analysis (after all, he was once the chief art critic for Time magazine).\u00a0 And he could have used with a better editor, as there is a bit of annoying repetition throughout.\u00a0 But overall this is a great place to start if you want to trace this amazing city\u2019s history across the millennia and be introduced to some of its major characters.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Francesco’s Venice: The Dramatic History of the World’s Most Beautiful City by Francesco da Mosto and John Parker<\/strong><\/p>\n

Most foreigners don\u2019t appreciate how distinct the history of Venice is from the history of \u201cItaly,\u201d because usually the main focus is on ancient Rome.\u00a0 But the Venetian Republic was the dominant naval and shipping power from West to East from its humble origins on the island of Torcello in 639, up to 1797 when it was conquered by Napoleon and then gifted to the Austrians.\u00a0 Their republic lasted longer than Rome\u2019s by at least 500 years.<\/p>\n

I read this book in 2010 when I was temporarily living in Venice for two months.\u00a0 I studied the literature and history of La Serenissima<\/i> in the morning, and then ventured out into the labyrinth to rediscover the past for myself every afternoon.\u00a0 I can\u2019t think of a better way to know a place than to study it in situ.\u00a0 (*I\u2019ll have much more to say about my time in Venice in an upcoming post.)<\/p>\n

The author is a bit full of himself and spends too much time flaunting his family lineage which he claims can be traced back to Venetian nobility.\u00a0 Still, it is a concise, approachable overview of Venetian history for anyone who doesn\u2019t much about the subject but would like to get quickly acquainted.\u00a0 An easy read with lots of great photos (including a few too many of author).<\/p>\n

Palmento: A Sicilian Wine Odyssey by Robert V. Camuto.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I really enjoyed this one\u2014it\u2019s like you\u2019re going on a wine tasting road trip with your best friend, savoring the serendipity of random encounters with a cast of colorful characters along the way. \u00a0And if you’re not careful, you might actually learn a few things.<\/p>\n

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Palmento<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

But not only do you learn about wine, but also about Sicilian history and culture; everything from foreigner occupiers to today\u2019s mafia. The writer has an easy, story-telling style and you quickly find yourself looking at maps and websites to start planning a trip to Sicily .<\/p>\n

My suggested pairing: read this book with a plate of pasta alla Norma and glass of Nero D\u2019Avola. \u00a0\u201cBonu vinu fa bonu sangu.<\/i>\u201d \u2013 \u201cGood wine makes good blood.\u201d<\/p>\n

Italian Ways: On and Off the Rails from Milan to Palermo by Tim Parks.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Being released June 10, 2013.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve read his previous book, Italian Neighbors, which is one of the great \u201cexpats living in Italy\u201d books of the modern times.\u00a0 This new one comes out next week.\u00a0 From the book description:<\/p>\n

\u201cThrough memorable encounters with ordinary Italians\u2014conductors and ticket collectors, priests and prostitutes, scholars and lovers, gypsies and immigrants\u2014Parks captures what makes Italian life distinctive: an obsession with speed but an acceptance of slower, older ways; a blind eye toward brutal architecture amid grand monuments; and an undying love of a good argument and the perfect cappuccino.<\/p>\n

Italian Ways<\/i>\u00a0also explores how trains helped build Italy and how their development reflects Italians\u2019 sense of themselves from Garibaldi to Mussolini to Berlusconi and beyond. Most of all,\u00a0Italian Ways<\/i>\u00a0is an entertaining attempt to capture the essence of modern Italy. As Parks writes, “To see the country by train is to consider the crux of the essential Italian dilemma: Is Italy part of the modern world, or not?”<\/p>\n

The Pursuit of Italy by David Gilmour<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

One of\u00a0The Economist<\/i>\u2019s 2011 Books of the Year<\/p>\n

\u201cDid Garibaldi do Italy a disservice when he helped its disparate parts achieve unity? Was the goal of political unification a mistake? These questions are asked and answered in a number of ways in this engaging, original consideration of the many histories that contribute to the brilliance\u2014and weakness\u2014of Italy today.<\/p>\n

David Gilmour\u2019s wonderfully readable ex\u00adploration of Italian life over the centuries is filled with provocative anecdotes as well as personal observations, and is peopled with the great fig\u00adures of the Italian past\u2014from Cicero and Virgil to Dante and the Medicis, from Garibaldi and Cavour to the controversial politicians of the twentieth century. Gilmour shows that the glory of Italy has always lain in its regions, with their distinc\u00adtive art, civic cultures, identities, and cuisines. Italy\u2019s strength and culture still come from its regions rather than from its misconceived, mishandled notion of a unified nation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Proust for Bagnanti by Emanuele Pettener<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

This book was written by one of my Italian professors at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Florida.\u00a0 Ema is a gifted writer with a sharp sense of humor and I\u2019m sure that this book will be a real pleasure for anyone who reads Italian at a high level. \u00a0It consists of three intersecting stories of three Italians living in the United States, each with a secret to hide.\u00a0 I haven\u2019t read it myself yet, but I hear that some of the narrative takes place on our campus in Florida, so I\u2019m anxious to find out more.<\/p>\n

\"italian<\/a>
Proust for swimmers<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Novembre 2001, tre storie d\u2019italiani negli Stati Uniti, ciascuno con un segreto in tasca, s\u2019intrecciano in South Florida. \u00a0L\u2019incredibile storia di Rosa, il suo viaggio prima in Calabria e poi a Venezia, alla ricerca di un passato da ricostruire. Alfredo Crepuscolo, studente d\u2019arte, che arriva in America all\u2019alba del 2000 \u201ccolmo d\u2019euforia da pioniere, come fosse il primo italiano dopo Colombo ad esplorare il Nuovo Continente\u201d. \u00a0E poi il narratore stesso con la sua fosca vicenda familiare, a met\u00e0 degli anni \u201990, e il suo \u201cAmerican Dream\u201d sullo sfondo maestoso del Canal Grande. \u00a0Tre storie in una, fitte di emozioni e colpi di scena, di sorprese, per i personaggi e per il lettore, nella luce ilare e colorata del sud tropicale americano, davanti a un oceano brillante, \u201cimperturbabile come un gentleman inglese\u201d.
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Your thoughts?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I have been reading books about Italy for the past ten years and I never seem to tire of the topic. \u00a0For me, Italy is a fascinating riddle whose solution always remains just out of my grasp.\u00a0 Whenever I think that I\u2019ve just about figured it out, I suddenly realize how little I know. And that\u2019s part of its allure, I think.<\/p>\n

If you have any suggestion for me, PLEASE leave them in the comments so that I can add them to my list.\u00a0 Ciao!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Books about Italy For foreigners who love Italia, reading books about Italy is the next best thing to being there.\u00a0 They inform us and inspire us at the same time, and our imagination does the rest.\u00a0 Perhaps for Americans in particular, since our history is so \u201cbrief\u201d and two-dimensional, Italy provides an endless landscape for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3884,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,42,5,285],"tags":[144,26,52,48,27,14,77],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1316"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1316"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1316\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3884"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1316"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1316"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1316"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}