Rating: 
Summary: Leaves No Stone Unturned!
Review: She tells a very detailed story of Sicilian life, history, etc. I am enjoying every minute. It really takes me away from the NY subway, where I read it. It gets plodding at times but then she quickly gets interesting again - a pitfall of trying to tell it all in one book. You'll really feel like you've been there.
Rating:
Summary: Honest, Evocative, and Delightful
Review: Simeti has crafted an unflinchingly honest, intellegent, and evocative portrait of Sicily. By refusing to romanticize the island, or overlook its flaws, she manages to bring out an image of a beautiful, conflicted, and vital culture. Her descriptions of the people and the countryside make this a wonderful book to curl up with; her scholarly tidbits make you want to learn more about mythology. A wonderful read.
Rating:
Summary: Beautifully descriptive portrayal of Sicily
Review: This is one of the loveliest books I've read in a longtime...so much so that I ended up travelling to Sicily, dog-eared bookin tow, to taste the pasta reale (marzipan) and arancini di riso (rice croquettes), stay at Villa Igiea in Palermo, visit the temple of Segesta, and meet the warm, friendly Sicilian people. This is a book to be savored. It is full of humor and tenderness. It is about living in Sicily, it is about Sicilian food and culture, and it is for folks who wish they could travel there and never will, as well as for those who vow that now, they really must see this phenomenal Italian island.
Rating:
Summary: The Sicily we don't know....
Review: Wanting to learn more about my family's place of origin, and to expand my knowledge of the island gained in a two-week visit several years ago, reviews of this book led me to buy it. The author, a graduate of a prestigious American college and a person not of Italian background, proves to have written an almost poetic journal of her family's life over the course of the four seasons on this enigmatic island. She combines a beautifully descriptive knowledge of the infinitely varied flora of Sicily with a close acquaintance with the political and social mores of its inhabitants. Moreover, her many references to the Greek origins of the island give the reader a perspective not commonly found. Her marriage to a middle class Sicilian university professor and her approach to raising two children in this unusual environment gives the book a personal slant not always available to one trying to get a handle on life in this ancient land.I heartily recommend this book to anyone wishing to learn about the real Sicily.
Rating:
Summary: The Sicily we don't know....
Review: Wanting to learn more about my family's place of origin, and to expand my knowledge of the island gained in a two-week visit several years ago, reviews of this book led me to buy it. The author, a graduate of a prestigious American college and a person not of Italian background, proves to have written an almost poetic journal of her family's life over the course of the four seasons on this enigmatic island. She combines a beautifully descriptive knowledge of the infinitely varied flora of Sicily with a close acquaintance with the political and social mores of its inhabitants. Moreover, her many references to the Greek origins of the island give the reader a perspective not commonly found. Her marriage to a middle class Sicilian university professor and her approach to raising two children in this unusual environment gives the book a personal slant not always available to one trying to get a handle on life in this ancient land. I heartily recommend this book to anyone wishing to learn about the real Sicily.
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