Book Details:

Book Title: Made in Italy by Laura Morelli
Category: Adult Non-fiction, 161 pages
Genre: Travel, History, Art
Publisher: Authentic Arts Publishing
Release date: Jan, 2019
Tour dates: Feb 11 to March 8, 2019
Content Rating: G

Book Description:

Richly painted maiolica ceramics from Tuscany. Supple Florentine leather. The cameos of Naples and the Amalfi Coast. Parmigiano-Reggiano, the king of cheeses. Jaw-dropping glass from the island of Murano.

MADE IN ITALY takes you on a complete tour of the dazzling artisanal legacy of Italy, uncovering off-the-beaten-path destinations and one-of-a-kind, hidden workshops where everything from leather bags to gilded frames are turned out completely by hand, piece by piece.

This book includes instructions for getting a free copy of the companion guide, ARTISANS OF ITALY, with complete, continually updated listings of Laura's personally recommended shops and artisans across Italy.

Laura Morelli, art historian and trusted guide in the world of cultural travel and authentic shopping, leads you behind the tourist traps to discover some of Italy's most traditional arts.

Laura holds a Ph.D. in art history from Yale University and shares how, what, and where to buy; hints on recognizing quality and authenticity; and tips for bringing home the artisanal treasures of Italy in your suitcase.
​

Add to Goodreads

Meet the Author:

LAURA MORELLI holds a Ph.D. in art history from Yale University, has taught college students in the U.S. and in Italy, and currently produces art history lessons for TED-Ed. She authored a column for National Geographic Traveler called “The Genuine Article” and has contributed pieces about art and authentic travel to CNN Radio, The Frommers Travel Show, and in USA TODAY, Departures, and other media.

Laura is the author of the Authentic Arts guidebook series that includes the popular book Made in Italy. Her fiction brings the stories of art history to life. Her debut novel, The Gondola Maker, won an IPPY for Best Historical Fiction and a Benjamin Franklin Award.

Connect with the Author: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ Instagram
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Details:

Book Title: All the Way to Italy: A modern tale of homecoming through generations past
Author: Flavia Brunetti
Category: Adult Fiction, 222 pages
Genre: Women's Fiction (can fit into YA Fiction as well)
Publisher: Ali Ribelli Edizioni
Release date: April 21, 2018
Tour dates: April 23 to May 18, 2018
Content Rating: PG for the occasional use of "for God's sake" and a few religious references (though very mild). No violence, no swear words, and no sex scenes.

Book Description:

Until her dad died, Little considered herself a Californian. Now, thanks to half a letter, a symbol she can’t quite remember, and writer’s block, she finds herself back in Italy, the country of her birth. In a headlong rush to return to her beloved San Francisco, Little will journey throughout Italy, hoping to find the answers she needs to move on with her life so she need never look back. She’ll enlist the help of the woman who raised her, Sira, her father’s sister; but Sira has secrets she’s kept for decades, and Little underestimates the power of the country she fled years before.

In this powerful story of mixed cultures in a world trying to globalize, one girl’s struggle to leave her home behind will lead her back to the women in her family and the memories each of them has safeguarded through the generations. From war-torn Italy to the belpaese of today, All the Way to Italy is a tale for those in search of a balance between wanderlust and the necessity to come home, a reminder that although we may be fragments, we are never a lost cause.



I enjoyed this debut novel that is wholly and thoroughly Italian in atmosphere, food - “green olives stuffed with meat then fried” and language, even though the protagonist thinks of herself as a Californian.

I appreciate the vivid descriptions as the reader accompanies Little on her travels through Florence, Naples and the Orvieto region as she searches for answers that will enable her to move forward. At the same time, the reader learns a bit of Italian history.

This is a well-written novel with excellent descriptions - “he had passed this on to her, too, this desperate need to recalibrate confusions within by the drumming of the sea.”

The characters are complex and real. My favourite is Little’s beloved aunt (zia) Sira, a wise, thoughtful woman holding onto family secrets, who is at the same time full of fierce love for her family.

This is a story of shifting family dynamics, family secrets, of finding one’s particular place in the world and the meaning of home. I look forward to more stories from this author.

Sandra Olshaski's disclosure: Thanks to Italy Book Tours for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product. a Rafflecopter giveaway

I was thrilled to discover Paola Bacchia's new cookbook. Not only does she include recipes of Italy's street food but this book is a work of art with its stunning photos, layout and discoveries of Italy's little-known eateries. Look for my review at Essentially Italian later this week.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Details:

Book Title: The Winemakers, A Novel of Wine and Secrets by Jan Moran
Category: Adult fiction, 368 pages
Genre: 20th Century Historical Romance
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Release date: April 5, 2016
​Content Rating: PG-13 + M (for themes of out-of-wedlock sex and childbirth. Two scenes of tasteful romantic sex (no body parts), and very mild language (no strong profanity).


Book Description:



​Buy the book: 

Birds of Passage: an Italian Immigrant coming of Age Story by Joe Giordano (Review and Giveaway)
Harvard Square Editions
ISBN: 9781941861080
Published: October 8, 2015
Trade paperback, 274 pages

Book description:

What turns the gentle mean and the mean brutal? The thirst for wealth? The demand for respect? Vying for a woman? Birds of Passage recalls the Italian immigration experience at the turn of the twentieth-century when New York's streets were paved with violence and disappointment.

Leonardo Robustelli leaves Naples in 1905 to seek his fortune. Carlo Mazzi committed murder and escaped. Azzura Medina is an American of Italian parents. She's ambitious but strictly controlled by her mother. Leonardo and Carlo vie for her affection.

Turning to Stone (Roma Series Book Four) by Gabriel Valjan
Winter Goose Publishing
ISBN: 978-1941058237
Published June 13, 2015
Trade paperback,  398 pages

Book Description:

Alabaster Black aka Bianca Nerini returns as an investigation into a public official’s assassination pits Bianca and her friends against a backdrop of financial speculation, female assassins on motorcycles, and the Camorra—the most ruthless of Italian organized crime gangs—in Gabriel Valjan’s TURNING TO STONE, the fourth book of the highly praised Roma series.

En route to a secret meeting, Aldo Giurlani—the regional commissioner of Lombardy in northern Italy and a specialist on organized crime—is assassinated in the middle of a public square.

Threading the Needle (Roma Series Book Three) by Gabriel Valjan
Winter Goose Publishing
ISBN: 978-0989479219
Published Oct 20, 2013
Trade paperback, 318 pages

Book Description:

Milan. Bianca’s curiosity gets a young university student murdered, but not before he gives her a file that details a secret weapon under development with defense contractor Adastra. Guilt may drive her to find justice for the slain Charlie Brooks, but she is warned by the mysterious Loki to stay away from this case that runs deep with conspiracy. Bianca must find a way to uncover government secrets and corporate alliances without returning Italy to one of its darkest hours, the decades of daily terrorism known as the “Years of Lead.”

Wasp's Nest (Roma Series Book Two) by Gabriel Valjan
Winter Goose Publishing
ISBN: 978-0988184534
Published Nov 23, 2012
Trade paperback, 294 pages

Book Description:

In the highly anticipated sequel to Roma, Underground, Bianca returns to the U.S. for her former employer, the covert organization Rendition, to investigate Cyril Sargent and Nasonia Pharmaceutical. Although ambivalent about the assignment and uneasy about her online “friend,” Loki, she is enticed into researching what Sargent is doing with insect genetics that might upset the world of cancer research and treatment. Old friends Farrugia and Gennaro uncover a twisted conspiracy from their past and join Bianca in Boston where they will experience conflicted loyalties, question allies, and confront uncertain enemies, as they’re drawn into the wasp’s nest.