Constant Reader discussion

I'm going to be traveling in Italy and always love to read books based in the places I am discovering. So, where better to come for recommendations than Constant Reader? I've already read Under the Tuscan Sun and The Leopard. Any more ideas? I will be downloading them to my Kindle so I can take as many as I'd like.

By Robert Hellenga

The Fall of a Sparrow

The Sixteen Pleasures

For something lighter, I'd recommend Summer's Lease by John Mortimer (author of the "Rumpole" series).

Have you tackled Eat, Pray, Love yet? The first third (Eat) is about Italy, and this one was a book where I felt Gilbert does a great job reading her own work, probably better than a professional narrator would have.

Have a wonderful time when you go; we loved our trip there. I’m embarrassed to say I’ve seen many more movies based in Italy. Some of these were based on books so you’d have a choice as to which way to enjoy them.
My House in Umbria
A Room With a View
The Agony and the Ecstasy: A Biographical Novel of Michelangelo
Angels & Demons
Roman Holiday
The Italian Job
Spartacus
Three Coins in a Fountain
Ben Hur
Tea with Mussolini
Letters to Juliet
The Talented Mr. Ripley
Gladiator

What Makes a Child Lucky: A Novel

I loved it. Here's the blurb from Amazon.

"In a timeless moment in rural Sicily, a boy experiences the brutal killing of his best friend and is kidnapped by the murderers. No child should have to know evil so intimately, and yet once he does, what will save him?

His salvation lies in the cycles of the seasons, the sturdy earth and its gifts of lentils and wild asparagus in a time of starvation, the animal sense that enables one to anticipate the whims and impulses of others, and, most important, familiarity with the Ancient Grandmother, who knows the entire play of good and evil. If he can trust her—the gang's cook, a fierce woman of great practical wisdom and humanity—he will escape the grip of perpetual violence."

I would second A Room with a View (the book, not the movie).

Speaking of movies, though, I recently saw The Bicycle Thief for the first time, and it gave me a keen desire to go to Sicily.

I loved The Bicycle Thief.

Barbara wrote: "I'm going to be traveling in Italy and always love to read books based in the places I am discovering. So, where better to come for recommendations than Constant Reader? I've already read Under t..."

I loved Italy. I spent a month there and didn't want to come home. I fell in love with Rome and wanted to move there. We went down into Calabria (did some mushroom picking) and took the ferry to Sicily too. Such great memories. Have a wonderful time!

A Soldier of the Great War, by Mark Helprin.

A septuagenarian professor of aesthetics recounts his wartime experiences as soldier, deserter, prisoner to a younger travelling companion. It's an adventure story, a love story ... it is a fantastic novel.

Recommended:

The Garden of the Finzi-Continis
A Jewish family in Ferrara lives life before the outbreak of WWII.

Where Angels Fear to Tread
Beautifully written, and not very long.

The Betrothed: I Promessi Sposi
Apparently all Italian students end up reading this historical novel several times throughout their school years. Set in 1628 Lombardy, around Lake Como and Milan. Long.

Christ Stopped at Eboli: The Story of a Year
An Italian doctor endures political exile in a desperately poor region of Italy in the late 1930s.

Death in Venice

Toss-up:
The Haunted Hotel: A Mystery of Modern Venice

The Savage Garden
A sort of literary/landscaping mystery set in Tuscany, I think after WWII.

Here's a list of books set in Italy; it certainly won't be comprehensive, since librarians have to manually add settings.

http://www.goodreads.com/places/12-italy

I knew this was the place to ask. What an embarrassment of riches! Thank you, everyone.

I second the recommendation of “The Garden of the Finzi-Contini’s” and (third) “A Room with a View”.

But I had to come here to put a plug for 2 non-fiction books. “One is Brunelleschi's Dome: The Story of the Great Cathedral in Florence and the other is The Stones of Venice. The later you can find in condensed editions - at least the one I have was edited quite a bit from the original, but I still loved it)

I always think that a great percentage of the fun of travelling is reading before the trip. Have a great time, Barb.

Thanks, Capitu! I forget to mention Anthony Doerr's memoir Four Seasons in Rome: On Twins, Insomnia, and the Biggest Funeral in the History of the World.

Barbara,If you go to Rome, a bit pricey but I highly recommend Spirito Di Vino. It is somewhat hard to find and when you get to the “street” where it is located you might wonder why on earth you’ve been sent there. But it was perhaps one of the best meals I’ve had in my life. There’s a famed dish made from a recipe dating back to ceasar’s time Rachel Ray even touted how wonderful this place was on her show. The link is here but I couldn’t get google to translate the page correctly. Even so, couple of pictures give you an idea of how tiny yet elegant it is inside. http://www.ristorantespiritodivino.ne... They encourage you to visit the small preserved wine cellar where each step you take is like traveling centuries back in time. It is run by a husband & wife and their son is one of the waiters.

This quote is from this other link
http://www.jewishitaly.org/detail.asp...
The building was constructed in 980 and became the first synagogue in Rome in 1073 founded by lexicographer Nathan ben Jechiel. The building is in the Trastevere area the original Jewish quarter before the Jews were forced to move to the Ghetto. The building also housed a Mikvah. On the base of the central column Hebrew characters are visible.
In 1859 the basement was discovered and two statues were found, one was the model for the statue of David in Florence and the other, a statue of a horse larger than the one in Capitoline Square, now housed respectively in the Vatican museum and in the Capitoline museum.

Barb,
I second John's recommendation of Summer's Lease by John Mortimer. It's witty and entertaining.

Please post a trip report when you return. I love being an armchair traveler.

Ann

Thanks so much for the restaurant recommendation, Janet. We are going to be in Rome for 4 days so, hopefully, we will have time to find it.

I'm surprised at how many titles are not available on Kindle and that's a requirement. My husband and I each travel with one bag that can be carried on the plane and a small bag for electronics, etc. The Doerr book and The Sixteen Pleasures are available as are many of the classics. However, the in between ones like the Helprin book are not. So, if you think of more that you would recommend, I'm still interested.

Last night, I found a free Kindle download of Twilight in Italy by D.H. Lawrence. I'm also wondering about Pictures From Italy by Dickens. However, last year, I got The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain and have a hard time staying interested in it. I know that Lawrence, Dickens and Twain have little in common but it makes me wonder if good fiction writers are actually good travel writers.

Thanks, Ann. I think we were posting at approximately the same time. Summer's Lease is not available on Kindle, but I just checked my library and they have it. I think I'll take a hint from Capitu about reading before the trip and get it there.

Ditto on several above, like The Garden of the Finzi-Continis, Death in Venice, Il Promissi Sposa and the nonfiction Brunelleschi's Dome. Adding to your list: Bread and Wine, by Ignazio Silone, and The Path to the Spider's Nest, by Italo Calvino. On edit: The Leopard, by de Lampedusa (forgot his first name and too lazy to go look.

If you read all these books, will you have time to travel? Tee hee!

I'm sure my recommendation, What Makes a Child Lucky: A Novel, is not available for the Kindle. It's kind of an obscure book. But it gives such a good idea of the conditions in Southern Italy and Sicily that led so many to immigrate to the US. Besides being a good tale.

Barb, I was coming here to recommend Lawrence's writing about Italy when I noticed that you already listed Twilight (?!) ... in Italy. I have a Penguin collection called D. H. Lawrence and Italy which includes that plus some other truly lovely pieces. Very strongly recommended!

Personally I like Lawrence's travel writing most of all his genres, his poetry second, stories third, and novels last (and I actually like his novels!).

His writing about Italy was closer to what we see in the New Yorker sometimes than more typical travel writing, and even more lyrical in tone.

I haven't read it myself, but a lot of people seem to like it.

The Enchanted April

A recipe for happiness: four women, one medieval Italian castle, plenty of wisteria, and solitude as needed.

The women at the center of The Enchanted April are alike only in their dissatisfaction with their everyday lives. They find each other—and the castle of their dreams—through a classified ad in a London newspaper one rainy February afternoon. The ladies expect a pleasant holiday, but they don’t anticipate that the month they spend in Portofino will reintroduce them to their true natures and reacquaint them with joy. Now, if the same transformation can be worked on their husbands and lovers, the enchantment will be complete.

Thanks, Philip. Now, I want to read the other pieces as well.

LG, I saw movie Enchanted in April and loved it. I'm wondering if it was faithful to the book.

We discussed The Enchanted April here in Classics. I really enjoyed it, plus I love the movie.

Here is a link:
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/2...

Oh my gosh, Sherry, I've already read it!! And, I liked it! Once more, I am wondering about my brain.

Well, the way I look at it, because we forget things with age, we can rediscover them and enjoy them all over again.

Sarah Dunant's books are set in Italy, but they aren't spectacular books. And there are Michael Dibdin's Aurelio Zen mysteries, which I think are really quite good mysteries.

The Enchanted April is one of my favorite books. And movies!

I really enjoyed Naples '44: A World War II Diary of Occupied Italy

A lighter look at Italian culture is John Grisham's Playing For Pizza

To make your mouth water while you are seeing the sights...
Al Dente

I also really enjoyed Pompeii

At any rate, I only have one piece of advice...eat lemon gelato at every stop! Have fun!

Barb -- I loved Enchanted April also and agree with sherry on simply being able to enjoy things afreash when we've forgotten them -- but EA is one to revisit regularly just BECAUSE it is so refreshing. And then -- I'm going to counter Gabrielle and strongly recommend Dunant -- though I will give a little and admit that Dunant is not for everyone. I have thoroughly enjoyed all of hers I've read thus far.

If you're into mysteries, Donna Leon's Inspector Brunetti series all take place in Venice. I've read a handful and they're kind of a mixed bag. Death at La Fenice is the first one.

Sherry wrote: "We discussed The Enchanted April here in Classics. I really enjoyed it, plus I love the movie.

Here is a link:
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/2..."

I saw the film, and am now reading "The Enchanted April" for a group read. I had hesitated, because I thought, "well, you've seen the film several times...", but I'm glad I'm reading it. Von Arnim's style is just lovely, and there's a lot of humor in it as well. It's really a very good read! Thanks!

Delurking for a moment to possibly add to your list. (Lots of different genres and eras.)

Beevor: A Tuscan Childhood
Berendt: The City of Falling Angels
Yeadon: Seasons in Basilicata: A Year in a Southern Italian Hill Village
Bower: Sins of the House of Borgia
Butturini: Keeping the Feast
Camilleri: August Heat
Carreiro: The Dog Who Ate the Truffle: A Memoir of Stories and Recipes from Umbria
Castagno: Too Much Tuscan Sun
Castagno: Too Much Tuscan Wine
Chen: Rosemary and Bitter Oranges: Growing Up in a Tuscan Kitchen
Davis: The Silver Pigs (Marcus Didius Falco #1)
De Blasi: A Thousand Days In Tuscany
De Blasi: A Thousand Days in Venice
De Blasi: That Summer in Sicily
De Blasi: The Lady in the Palazzo
De Teran: A Valley In Italy
Doran: The Reluctant Tuscan
Dusi: Bel Vino: A Year of Sundrenched Pleasure Among the Vines of Tuscany
Dusi: Vanilla Beans & Brodo: Real Life in the Hills of Tuscany
Epstein: As The Romans Do
Essex: Leonardo's Swans
Follain: City of Secrets: The Startling Truth Behind the Vatican Murders
Fortier: Juliet
Gable: Palladian Days: Finding a New Life in a Venetian Country House
Gellis: Lucrezia Borgia and the Mother of Poisons
Hales: La Bella Lingua: My Love Affair with Italian, the World's Most Enchanting Language
Harrison: Italian Days
Hawes: Extra Virgin: A Young Woman Discovers the Italian Riviera, Where Every Month is Enchanted
Hewson: The Villa of Mysteries
Hutchinson: When In Rome: A Journal of Life in Vatican City
Jones: The Lost Madonna
Kalogridis: I, Mona Lisa
Kalogridis: The Borgia Bride
Kalogridis: The Devil's Queen: A Novel of Catherine de Medici
Kalogridis: The Scarlet Contessa: A Novel of the Italian Renaissance
Laker: The Venetian Mask
Laven: The Virgins of Venice: Enclosed Lives and Broken Vows in the Renaissance Convent
Le Guin: Lavinia
Loupas: The Second Duchess
Mate: A Vineyard in Tuscany: A Wine Lover's Dream
Mate: The Hills of Tuscany
Mayes: Every Day in Tuscany: Seasons of an Italian Life
Mayes: In Tuscany
Park: The Secret Book of Grazia Dei Rossi
Parks: Italian Neighbors
Parks: An Italian Education: The Further Adventures of an Expatriate in Verona
Plaidy: Madonna of the Seven Hills: A Novel of the Borgias
Pohlman: Halfway to Each Other
Poole: Poison: A Novel of the Renaissance
Poole: The Borgia Betrayal
Prior: La Cucina: A Tale of Rapture
Quinn: Daughters of Rome
Quinn: Mistress of Rome
Rips: Pasquale's Nose: Idle Days in an Italian Town
Robilant: The Venetian Affair: A True Tale of Forbidden Love in the 18th Century
Rogers: The Dolce Vita Diaries: Stories from an Olive Grove
Saylor: Roman Blood (Roma Sub Rosa #1)
Schell: Tomato Rhapsody: A Fable of Love, Lust & Forbidden Fruit
Shalleck: Mediterranean Summer
Shapiro: Renato's Luck
Sobel: Letters to Father: Suor Maria Celeste to Galileo, 1623-1633
Valentini: Chewing Gum in Holy Water: A Childhood in the Heart of Italy
Weideger: Venetian Dreaming

I hope you have a wonderful trip!

Oh my gosh! Thank you, BookWoman!

I just started Across the River and into the Trees which is set in Venice. It's too soon to know if I'll like it.

I just started Summer's Lease last night and, so far, it's perfect for my Italian mood.

Barbara wrote: "I just started Summer's Lease last night and, so far, it's perfect for my Italian mood."

I read it earlier this year and it was a pleasant diversion.

The Secret of Santa Vittoria

Anne wrote: "The Secret of Santa Vittoria"

Oh my goodness, Anne, this book combines my love of Italy and my love of wine!

While you're at it, Barbara, you might as well add The Imperfectionists to your TBR pile. I'd recommend it anyway, but it is set in Rome - the good news is that you can read it later, after you return, appreciating the local details better.

Ditto on seeing the video of Summer's Lease, with John Gielgud as the grandfather (I haven't seen it yet myself).

Looks very good, John, and it's only 9.99 on Kindle.

Wow, bookwoman, fantastic.

I really enjoyed THE CITY OF FALLING ANGELS by John Berendt who wrote MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL.
The book makes You want to go to Venice and gives a view of recent Ventian society that's fun and entertaining.

From one wine lover to another Barb, it's a really good book. And the movie's not half bad, either.

Jim wrote: "I really enjoyed THE CITY OF FALLING ANGELS by John Berendt who wrote MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL.
The book makes You want to go to Venice and gives a view of recent Ventian society t..."

I read that one, too. It was super good in parts.

Barbara wrote: "I'm going to be traveling in Italy and always love to read books based in the places I am discovering. So, where better to come for recommendations than Constant Reader? I've already read Under t..."

I second the two Hellenga books. I promised myself I'd take The Fall of a Sparrow as my guide book if I ever travel again to Italy. Read A Room with a View while I visited Florence with a good friend and fellow lover of literature. It gave our visit another layer. So I second that one too. Maybe you are already on your way. Let us know which books deepened your pleasure in the place.

"Barbara wrote: "I'm going to be traveling in Italy and always love to read books based in the places I am discovering. So, where better to come for recommendations than Constant Reader? I've alre..." I love Sicily and loved reading Mary Taylor Simeti's "On Persephone's Island." This is her story of moving to Sicily, marrying a professor of agriculture. Her travels around the island are fascinating to read. She also wrote "Pomp and Sustenance" full of wonderful recipes and stories about food.

Barb,

I don't know if you already have more than you can manage in terms of books about Italy, but here's one I recently 'discovered' that looks quite wonderful - Italian Journey by Johann von Goethe, translated by W. H. Auden!

I think I'll read about in it a bit this August and imagine that I'm visiting Italy too ...

I just long to visit Italy so I am so envious! Reading all of these great recommendations made me remember a recommendation that I don't see listed here. A very cosmopolitan lady with whom I was acquainted a few years back mentioned a book that I've always wanted to get to called:

. This book combines a good story along with a different passion for Italian food. Maybe I should say Sicilian food! My friend was enchanted with this book and when I saw it in a used bookstore once it was actually in the section with the cookbooks, as was the Julie and Julia book.

I would 2nd the recommendations for A Room with A View, Enchanted April & The Garden of the Finzi Continis.

I love this thread !

Two books that are set in Italy that I loved are by Tim Parks. I see they are on the list posted by BookWoman. I just wanted to say I read and enjoyed both very much.


Italian Neighbors~~Tim Parks

Italian Education~~Tim Parks

Death at La Fenice~Donna Leon

Beautiful and serene Venice is a city almost devoid of crime. But that is little comfort to Maestro Helmut Wellauer, a world-renowned conductor whose intermission refreshment comes one night with a little something extra in it-cyanide. For Guido Brunetti, vice-commissario of police and detective genius, finding a suspect isn't a problem; narrowing the large and unconventional group of enemies down to one is. As the suave and pithy Brunetti pieces together clues, a shocking picture of depravity and revenge emerges, leaving him torn between what is and what should be right -- and questioning what the law can do, and what needs to be done

-----------------

I haven't read this one yet, but it was recently recommended to me.