Here is an update and funny story on my quest to get through City of Falling Angels if you are interested.
I originally requested the book last spring from the library. The library system here in Hawaii is quite SLOW . I received a card in the mail the day I was departing for a month in Italy saying the book was available. This was about 10 weeks after I put in the request. I had forgotten all about the book. I found out when reading the card that I would be charged a dollar if I did not pick up the book within a week! I asked my friend to please cancel the request for me as the library was closed (state holiday) and I was leaving that night. She took the book out for me instead and then renewed it. We have a 3 week period with 1 renewal. By the time I got back, I had 2 weeks left. I knew I would not get through it after jet lag and getting ready for my new work year and so I returned it.
I saw the book on the shelf again this past November. I checked it out, and then renewed it. The problem was that this ended up being the end of the school semester and right before Christmas so of course I had no time to read. I went to return it after 6 weeks right after Christmas at a different library (we have a state system so we can return books at any library) and found the same book on the shelf there! SO I checked it out telling myself that this time I was definitely going to read the book.
Well, Saturday, I called to renew the book as it was due today thinking that I still had 3 more weeks. The woman told me that I could not renew the book. I thought it was because she was looking at my history and saw that I had already had this book checked out for a total of 15 weeks. I found out it was because someone requested it. I figured that since I had to return it, I would never get to finishing it so I searched through the book to find out who really set the fire. I read that part and the end.
Yesterday, I went to another library and returned the book. I headed over to the Italy section to see if the Tim Parks book was in since I had seen it at this library in the past. I was so surprised to see City of Falling Angels on the shelf! SO, I checked it out again. And this time I have a back-up plan. I headed over to the reference desk and put in a request for the audio book CD set. The lady looked at me in amazement saying that it was 13 hours long. I told her that I could listen to it in 13 work days to/from work with all the traffic I sit in. I figure that I might as well keep the book til the due date just in case but probably the CD will finally get me through this book. I am determined to finish it one way or another.
First sorry for the delay in responding...I've been busy and haven't been on the web alot
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Originally posted by jvp: quote: ************** Love Donna Leon. I'm putting together a list of streets and vaporetta stops that the Inspector frequents on his travels around Venice. Plan to "walk in his footsteps" when I get to Venice in August. Do you think this is possible? And is there really a police station at the address the book mentions?
JVP (Deep in the heart of Texas)
You most definitely can, I took a picture of my reflection in the door of the police station. It was marked on one of the maps that I had. If you go to my pictures, page 4, at the bottom, the picture before last, you will see it.
I'm currently reading, The Sacred Cut by David Hewson which takes place in Rome and next I will be reading, "Death in a Serene City" by Edward Sklepowich, it takes place in Venice.
I guess reading novels set in Italy is the next best thing to being there.
Lynn
Posts: 21 | Location: Elk Grove, CA | Registered: 24 December 2006
My copy of David Hewson's 'The Lizard's Bite' arrived this morning! Set amongst the glass-making community on Murano it will be interesting to compare it with Donna Leon's 'Through A Glass Darkly' also set on that island. I enjoyed 'City of Fallen Angels' by John Berendt very much but could not get on with Marlena de Blasi's 'Thousand Days in Venice'. However Paula Weideger's 'Venetian Dreaming' I keep re-reading along with Salley Vicker's 'Miss Garnet's Angel' the novel that started my passion Venice!
Posts: 93 | Location: England | Registered: 19 May 2006
Ciaofornow, thank you for putting together this great reference list! I have two more for you to add:
"The Ruby Ring" by Diane Haeger, a historical novel about Raphael's mistress, the subject of the painting "La Fornarina."
"A Culinary Traveller in Tuscany" by Beth Elon -- an off-the-beaten track tour of Tuscan towns with information about the special foods of each area, restaurant recommendations, and recipes.
Also, you could include the other book with the title "When in Rome" -- this one the murder mystery by Ngaio Marsh.
I've got a copy of Norwich's A history of Venice published years ago so I'm sure the March edition will be a reprint. Perhaps you could find it cheaply in a secondhand bookshop or on Amazon.
A small correction to one of the books on the book list. The title is ROMAN SPRING, MEMOIRS [not "Springs"]. The author is Mrs. Winthrop Chanler [no "d"]. Her real name was Margaret Terry Chanler--don't know why she used the married form as that was highly uncommon in 1934 when this book was published.
Thoughtful reminiscences by an American, born and raised in Rome, who returned to America, a country foreign to her, when she married.
Posts: 569 | Location: Boston MA | Registered: 19 December 2006
Thx Ginny, I've updated the info. I read part of Margaret Chanler's memoir online, what an interesting read! and a "well-connected" family. (Julia Ward Howe was her aunt and the Astors were relations)
Besides, I have to imagine living in Bernini's gorgeous Palazzo Odescalchi wouldn't be too strenuous.
Posts: 260 | Location: Canada | Registered: 23 July 2004
I am always pleased to find a book I have not read from all of you. Last week finished Marlena de Blasi's book "Lady in the Palazzo" and thought it was her best. It had a lot of insights into the culture of Orvieto. If her books are a window into their existence in Italy, they appear to have really "scraped by" at times. Yea for Marlena's tenacity and spirit.
Posts: 83 | Location: California | Registered: 19 September 2006
I've enjoyed "Marcovaldo" and "The Baron in the Trees" by Italo Calvino. I will admit to reading them in English although I did complete some of Marcovaldo in Italian.
I recently finished "A Thread of Grace" by Mary Doria Russell. Quite a good story.
Posts: 217 | Location: Alexandria, Virginia | Registered: 09 May 2005
This one wasn't on the list - "Blood of my Blood" by Richard Gambino. Since I am not very good at putting words together, I will quote - "With greater impact than any other nonfiction book on the subject has achieved to date, it weaves together the history, sociology and psychology of first, second and third=generation Italian Americans". I read it many years ago but enjoyed it very much. Laroma
Posts: 113 | Location: St. Louis, Missouri | Registered: 31 July 2003
Just finished "The Reluctant Tuscan....How I Discovered My Inner Italian by Phil Doran. Wonderful!!!! A feel good book but I was ready to go and do the same by the time I finished it. Was reading part of it in the airport and got funny glances at my LOL! Loved it! Know it's already on the list but tried it because of the list. Glad I did. Having a hard time getting into "The Stones of Florence" by Mary McCarthy. Laroma Laroma
Posts: 113 | Location: St. Louis, Missouri | Registered: 31 July 2003
I have only read de Blasi's Tuscany book. I enjoyed reading about the village, the townies (citadini), and customs. But I was put off by her dysfunctional husband/relationship. NOW, I wonder.... if the book had been fiction, would I have had the same reaction? Maybe not. Guess I felt sorry for the poor dab being written about so publicly, knowing he is real and they are a real couple.
I've only read de Blasi's Venice book, but had a similar reaction. I enjoyed the beginning, but was soon turned off by her negativity and just couldn't connect with her at all. In the end, I only finished the book because of the descriptions of Venice (and some yummy sounding recipes!)
Right now I'm about 2/3 of the way through a book by Anna P. Zurzolo called "Bread, Wine & Angels" and finding it much more to my liking. Here's a short blurb:
The story of a child--a girl child--in a remote village of southern Italy living in an environment where girls are "barrels of wine" to be sold off quickly lest they turn to vinegar. Here, in this impregnable cradle of society, she waits for the fulfillment of her father's promise--that he and her mother, who emigrated to "poor" America (Canada), will return and bring America back with them. "...a novel that describes the real lives of a vanished world with brilliant and down-to-earth sincerity."--Quill and Quire
One of photographer John Ferro Sims beautiful books : -Traditional Houses of Rural Italy (text by Paul Duncan) -Landscape in Italy (text by Lisa St Aubin de Teran) -Handmade in Italy-(text in association with Debra Boraston) Perfect for people suffering with Italy homesickness.
What I am really going to appreciate about this book is the feeling it is going to give me as I stay in an agriturismo this summer--a renovated farmhouse that was for centuries the abode of many, many generations of sharecroppers. Pietro's descriptions of what the farmhouses were like before the mezzadria system came to an end in the 1960's is certainly not like the homey conditions I will enjoy--with running water, comfy shower, reading lamps, etc., etc.
The box of books I sent to myself from the states FOUR MONTHS AGO finally arrived today! I've started on "Heat", not completely about Italy but certainly related to Italy.
Next will be "The Lost Painting" by Jonathan Harr.
I'm now reading Anthony Everitt's biography of Cicero. It's a very readable bio which gives an interesting look at late Republican Rome and the life of someone I mainly remember hating in long ago Latin classes . It's also interesting to compare it with Robert Harris' fictional version (Imperium) which I read not long ago.
Posts: 825 | Location: Virginia (but still missing Naples!) | Registered: 05 October 2005
Originally posted by Carolina M: Me, too - couldn't get through City of Falling Angels - and I tried!!
I had great hopes for this book--but I've been slogging thru it for about 2 months now...Ezra Pound?? Oh well. Seems like La Fenice is incidental to the book.
Anything by Ross King (Michelangelo, the Pope, and his Ceiling especially). This thread is fantastic! Thanks everyone!
Posts: 432 | Location: Maryland | Registered: 04 March 2007
I just finished, and really enjoyed - The Reluctant Tuscan by Phil Doran. I have read all the past posts on here about it, and a poster who wrote one of the best trip reports I have ever read, BillC, recommended it.
I found it a breath of fresh air in my busy, everyday life of school and teenagers. I will put it in my bookcase in the very long shelf of books of a similar genre, and plan to reread it in the future.
I just finished reading "The Reluctant Tuscan" also and absolutely loved it. Phil Doran has a wonderful sense of humor. Would very much recommend it. Laroma
Posts: 113 | Location: St. Louis, Missouri | Registered: 31 July 2003
The first book I read about Tuscany - because it happened to be in the travel section where I was buying a guidebook - was Too Much Tuscan Sun. While I found it interesting, especially the description of the palio, I also thought it betrayed a dislike of American tourists. Maybe deservedly so in some cases but I didn't enjoy that aspect of it. Now I am reading the de Blasi book. The relationships in it seem overwrought to me but the descriptions of Tuscan daily life are enjoyable.
Why were all the references to ciaofornow's catalog of these recommendations on the Library Thing website deleted? It really was a great reference, and I couldn't find anything in the thread explaining why the links to that catalog had been removed.
I just finished "Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling" by Ross King, and found it very fascinating.
We are taking the after-hours tour of the Vatican, and can't wait to see the Sistine Chapel. After reading the history behind the ceiling, I know I will appreciate it even more.
Julie
Posts: 53 | Location: Palm Bay, Florida | Registered: 29 December 2006
I finally finished reading Elsa Morante's History: A Novel, set in World War II Rome. It is beautifully written and translated from Italian. This book is (or should be) considered one of Italy's finest pieces of literature.
Now--I am ready for something lighter, to prepare for our trip to Italy in the very near future!!!
So many excellent books have already been mentioned, I hestitate to add others. Having just moved to Italy, friends recommended several nonfiction titles to help me learn about the culture:
1. Naples '44 by Norman Lewis: fascinating World War II diary by a British soldier that chronicles his daily interactions and blossoming friendships with the citizens of Naples, and how they struggle through very difficult conditions after the war.
2. The New Italians by Charles Richards: modern study by a British author of the challenges facing Italian citizens, the influence of the Catholic Church and the mafia, and how regional differences between the North & the South developed due to their city structure and government, land use, and economic activities.
In preparation for our visit to Assisi/Umbria this July, I have just started reading "On the Road with Francis of Assisi" by Linda Bird Franke. I am really enjoying it--which I didn't really expect to, as I am not one for reading history books, much less religious history. I just felt I couldn't well visit that area without knowing the first thing about St. Francis. But the life of St. Francis is presented in a very engaging way and woven into a travelogue of present-day Assisi and environs, which makes it much more accessible to someone like me. In fact, I am making lists of places mentioned that I want to visit and might not otherwise have thought much about (i.e., Eremo delle Carceri.)
Another one here chiming in with praises of "A Thousand Bells at Noon" by Franco Romagnoli. Romagnoli grew up in Trastevere and then eventually emigrated to the US. Here he tries to give some insight into the way modern Roman life works, with some history and some sociology. Mostly, he is a wonderful writer and, equally important IMHO, he does not look for clever easy answers to the paradoxical elements of life in modern Rome.
I'm half way through the fascinating biography by Caroline Murphy about Felice della Rovere, "The Pope's Daughter", the story of Julius II Della Rovere's daughter. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in Renaissance history (actually it should be "herstory") life, art, people .
Originally posted by Roz: Why were all the references to ciaofornow's catalog of these recommendations on the Library Thing website deleted? It really was a great reference, and I couldn't find anything in the thread explaining why the links to that catalog had been removed.
- Roz
She asked us to remove them. I can't remember why.
Topic Closed
. I received a card in the mail the day I was departing for a month in Italy saying the book was available. This was about 10 weeks after I put in the request. I had forgotten all about the book. I found out when reading the card that I would be charged a dollar if I did not pick up the book within a week! I asked my friend to please cancel the request for me as the library was closed (state holiday) and I was leaving that night. She took the book out for me instead and then renewed it. We have a 3 week period with 1 renewal. By the time I got back, I had 2 weeks left. I knew I would not get through it after jet lag and getting ready for my new work year and so I returned it.
And this time I have a back-up plan. I headed over to the reference desk and put in a request for the audio book CD set. The lady looked at me in amazement saying that it was 13 hours long. I told her that I could listen to it in 13 work days to/from work with all the traffic I sit in. I figure that I might as well keep the book til the due date just in case but probably the CD will finally get me through this book. I am determined to finish it one way or another.
