Hi Eloise, I'm not familiar with the Camilleri books...would you recommend them? I'm always looking for something new to read -- and something set in Sicily intrigues!
I love the Fictional Cities website - I've been reading it for about a year now. Have read a number of books he recommended, and his reviews are excellent - hasn't steered me wrong yet.
I enjoy the Inspector Montalbano books very much. He's a somewhat idiosyncratic character - 50 years old, thinks he's in love but avoids commitment, derives more satisfaction from food than almost anything else, likes and respects his colleagues but blows up at them frequently - and his colleagues all have their own little quirks. At the same time, each of the books tackles a genuine Sicilian problem, such as illegal immigration, financial wheeling-and-dealing, etc.
Camilleri has a fairly light touch (I find myself laughing out loud sometimes), and while he doesn't shy from violence or cruelty, he puts them in a humane light, as reflected through Montalbano and the moral conflicts he faces.
I understand that Camilleri has lived in Rome for many years, but I find his books deeply Sicilian in the way that I personally see Sicily - as an indissoluble melding of the light and the dark.
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