Filled with 150 crossword puzzles, The Everything Crosswords for the Beach Book is all you need to wile away a lazy afternoon in the sun. These fun yet challenging crosswords are perfect for a day at the beach or just an hour in the backyard!
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Under The Sun
Manufacturer: Constable
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0582153840 |
Book Description
Cirque du Soleil has become an international theatrical sensation, having thrilled the imaginations of more than 40 million people with its innovative circus experience. In 20 years, Cirque du Soleil skyrocketed from a troupe on the streets of Montreal known as "The High Heels Club" to a circus extravaganza involving 2,400 employees worldwide and some 500 artists performing in more than 130 cities around the globe in active productions that are both on tour and permanently on view in Las Vegas and Orlando.
With unprecedented access to Cirque du Soleil members in the telling of their story-including its founder, Guy Laliberté-Cirque du Soleil: 20 Years Under the Sun is the first retrospective to chart the history of this extraordinary cultural phenomenon from its humble origins to its remarkable international success. With 300-plus full-color illustrations that feature all of the company's dazzling productions-among them Saltimbanco, Mystère, Varekai, and "O"-this exceptional volume captures Cirque's magic on the printed page with the visual brio for which the company is widely renowned. The release of this book is set to coincide with Cirque du Soleil's 20th anniversary. AUTHOR BIO: Tony Babinski is a writer, filmmaker, and musician based in Montreal. From 1994 to 2000 he coproduced, cowrote, and scored a series of award-winning experimental films. Kristian Manchester, also based in Montreal, is an art director with the Diesel design firm.
Customer Reviews:
Kind of like a yearbook.......2006-11-11
Have seen 8 or 9 different Cirque shows. Even met their talent scout at the Fringe one year. Part of this book tells the history of Cirque du Soleil, which was very interesting. The part on the individual shows was more like a yearbook. Didn't tell you enough about each individual show but supplied a lot of prompts to help you remember the show. Good coffee table book.
First saw the book at a Cirque show and thought: 'Hmmm, I could probably save some $$ getting this on Amazon.' Saved $20 U.S. and bought a couple of CDs.
Amazon.com
In 1995, two years after his grandfather whispered the name of his great-great-grandfather's killer to him, Frank Viviano visited Sicily to learn the events that shaped his namesake's life and strongly influenced his own. Nicknamed "The Monk" for the garments he wore while robbing the rich and bureaucratic, Viviano's ancestor left little for the experienced foreign correspondent to follow. Plus, the slow-jolt journey of Sicilian lifestyles often ended in polite reticence or remarkable disorganization; even rudimentary information, such as his predecessor's gravesite, was lost. In a "morbid tidying up," Mussolini's local officials removed the remains of all pre-Fascists: "In their zeal to launch the new millennium, the fascisti hadn't bothered to keep lists of the disinterred. The old tombstones were dumped into the sea, next to the limestone blocks that the fishermen referred to as 'Atlantis.'"
In between assignments in Bosnia and the West Bank, Viviano learned to take a less direct approach. Guided by stories told to him in his childhood by his grandmother, he demystifies the region's bandit-rebel history, its current life under the sistema, and its creation of the modern Italian mafia. Viviano was already aware of his family's supposed connections to the mafia, causing him to look more carefully at the times that produced these men. In the process, he began to take a closer look at his own personal life:
The dramatic narrative of ancestry is not erased by immigration. It is driven into a clandestine realm where setting and characters are only dimly recalled, or transformed into fairy-tale heroes and villains in the landscape of fable. The Monk, in this sense, had withdrawn into my grandparents' tales and the isolated recesses of my imagination, into hidden canyons where I could not directly confront him.
Suspenseful and well balanced, Blood Washes Blood is an exciting and thoughtful page-turner, a remarkable story of family, mystery, and friendship. Viviano's writing is at its best when he follows the complicated trail of his family's past, and falters only slightly when he attempts to imagine his ancestor's life. --Karin Rosman
Book Description
Against the sweeping backdrop of western Sicily, in a riveting seven-year quest, Frank Viviano pieces together his own harrowing ancestral history of betrayal and redemption. His take is haunted, from its violent opening to its stunning climax, by an ancient Sicilian proverb, Lu sangu lava lu sangu, "Blood washes blood": the torrent of unforgiving vengeance that flows from an unforgivable offense.
Viviano's great-great grandfather was a legendary bandit who traveled the countryside of Sicily by night in the robes of a friar and was known as "the Monk." His brutal murder has remained shrouded in mystery for four generations. Until now.
Populated by an extraordinary cast of nineteenth-century Robin Hood brigands and twentieth-century underworld bosses, here is a true-life Godfather, in which past and present finally merge into a single story with a shattering climax that ultimately changes the way the author views his immigrant family's complex legacy -- and himself.
Customer Reviews:
One of the best so far to capture what life in Sicily is like!.......2007-07-23
My own maternal Grandparents emigrated from Terrasini, Sicily as children in the early 1900's, and we Grandchildren heard some of the stories related in BLOOD WASHES BLOOD when growing up in St. Louis, Missouri. Terrasini in the 19th Century was only a town of a little over 2,000 people (Today it has about 10,000), and 19 families make up ~ 90% of the population. My Mother's relatives had lived there for over two centuries. Some of our family have been fortunate enough to return there on vacations, and my husband and I have visited twice in the last 3 years (Sicily is very much like Southern California where we live). The Viviano Family (St. Louis branch) are related to the DiMercurio's in St. Louis - my Mother's relatives.
Having taken a course in Sicilian Studies under the auspices of the University of California, I was already familiar with the feudal and absolute structure of Sicily's ruling class up to the late 19th Century. Frank Viviano does a terrific job of bringing that life to light, as well as the confining and demeaning influence of the Mafia and Sicily's current economic woes. Unemployment in Palermo Province still sits around 20% even in these most prosperous times. I did not realize that Sicily was under martial law, at least, twice after the reunification of Italy because of the widespread political unrest, resulting in many emigrants - including my Great-Grandparents and Grandparents - literally escaping from the island under false pretenses to reach an Italians or other port where they could get a ship to the USA without a valid exit visa. I think Frank Viviano does a great job describing the impact of the reunification effort on Sicilians and even mentions the atrocity of Partinico, although he merely alludes to the torture and cannibalism that occured there so near to lovely Terrasini. A people can only withstand oppression for so long, then...
By the end of the book, I felt that Frank Viviano had not only solved a family mystery but came to grips with some aspects of his own life that became clearer. It is no surprise that he is an award-winning journalist. If you are a reader and have not visited Sicily, Danilo Dolci's SICILIAN LIVES brings 20th Century Sicilian culture/norms to life, even if it does stop at the early 1980's. So much has changed in Sicily for the better as we noted when we were there in 2005, but the inherent Sicilian nature is certainly portrayed accurately in this gem.
Gorgeous Writing, This Book Will Help You Understand Sicily.......2007-04-12
I read this book when in first came out five years ago. For work and pleasure, I have probably read over 100 books about Italy in the intervening years and this book is still one of the best. I just re-read the first page and got chills. The writing is eloquent, the story incredible (and all the more so because it is true) and the sense of place Viviano evokes is so compelling. If you want to understand Sicily, the history of rural Italy, the confusing legacy of the Old World for many Italian-Americans, read this book. If you just want to read a great piece of narrative non-fiction, read this book. I'm planning on re-reading it.
Now I understand my father........2005-09-11
My sister gave all of us a copy of this book and she said we needed to read it to understand who were are. She was right. My father was born in Palermo and came to the United States at the age of 14. He was a wonderful family man who loved his wife of 58yrs and his 4 daughters. But, he was a complicated man and at times, very secretive. Now I understand. He told us of his transition into the American life and I thought he was embellishing because he was a great story teller, but now I understand the hardships, the backbreaking work, and the joys of providing for his family. After reading this book, I am even prouder to say when asked, "No, I'm not Italian-American, I am Sicilian-American."
Fantastic!.......2004-08-08
I highly recommend Blood Washes Blood. While it may be a bit dark and heavy for a summer read, it is definitely worth any time or money spent in the endeavor.
Mr. Viviano has a gift with non-fiction unlike any other writer of this genre I have ever read. His story unfolds like a novel, fascinating in its characters and settings and yet all the more immediate because it is true.
Mr. Viviano traces his family's history and his own journey of self-discovery through the winding streets of Sicily, uncovering a few secrets and finding even more along the way.
At times his prose is almost too real, too painful and private, but it creates an intense bond with the reader.
In short, don't pick up this book expecting a quick read. Yes, it is riveting, but at times a little overwhelming as well. The highest praise I can give Blood Washes Blood was that it left me with plenty to think about once it was finished, and a lingering interest in Sicily and its history.
Mr. Vivano has had articles recently in publications such as National Geographic, and I highly recommend readers to search out more of his work. You won't be disappointed.
Fascinating.......2003-07-19
Having come of age in St. Louis, and marrying into a Sicilian American family, all the "old stories" and legends were the makings for any family get together. Blood Washes Blood brought so many of the old stories to life and was even more compelling to read than The Godfather because it was a family with a familiar name.
On his deathbed, Frank Viviano's grandfather whispers an old family secret to him. The secret leads Mr. Vivano, back to Sicily and to a search for answers that seem to elude him. His curiosity as a foreign correspondent for the San Francisco Chronicle well prepares him to do the research and fuel his interest in exploring what happened to the great grandfather known as The Monk.
My husband and his brothers recently traveled to Sicily and spent several days in Terrasini and Cinisi looking into old records of their ancestors. Unfortunately their trip took place before we discovered Blood Washes Blood. Mr. Viviano turns the old stories into living history. Thanks for the book, our family all enjoyed reading it.
Book Description
In July 2001, a team of nine modern-day adventurers journeyed to North Peary Land, Greenland, an area located north of the Arctic Circle that encompasses the world's largest national park. Known as The 2001 Return To The Top Of The World Expedition, the team summited several of the remaining unclimbed peaks in the northernmost mountain range in the world. They also took measurements to determine which of these is actually the northernmost mountain peak on Earth. In addition to their historic climbing adventure, the team conducted a series of scientific studies aimed at determining the effect of global pollution on this pristine Arctic environment.
For six members of the team this was their second trip to the far north. In 1996 team leaders John Jancik and Ken Zerbst, along with team members Terri Baker, Steve Gardiner, Joe Sears, and Jim Schaefer were part of an expedition to locate and verify Oodaaq Island, the current northernmost point of land on the planet. It was in the aftermath of that journey that the plan for the current trip was born.
Early on the team decided to dedicate the 2001 return expedition to the memory of legendary singer/songwriter John Denver, in honor of his commitment to the environment and protection of the wilderness. On July 18, 2001 the Expedition team successfully summited the highest unclimbed peak in the Roosevelt Range. The Expedition has named this mountain, one of the northernmost on Earth, "JOHN DENVER PEAK". Feeling that it is very fitting that this peak be named in honor of the late humanitarian and environmental activist, the Expedition has received worldwide support and congratulations. Such notables as Jean-Michel Cousteau, Annie Denver and Colorado Governor Bill Owens, as well as several of John Denver's family members, have participated in this honor of Mr. Denver.
In the true spirit of this extraordinary man, StarsEnd Creations is pleased to have been a supporter of this expedition through a corporate sponsorship. We are also excited to announce our latest publication, Under The Midnight Sun, the story of this epic journey to the Arctic. Drawn from the journals and photographs of the team, John Jancik, Steve Gardiner and Javana Richardson (author of A Tribute To John Denver), will tell the exciting story of this expedition into the unexplored reaches of our planet. With magnificent photos inside and on the cover by National Geographic photographer, the late Galen Rowell, this is an extraordinary work that anyone with an interest in our beautiful wilderness, the world's environment, or who is a fan of John Denver, will want to own.
Customer Reviews:
COMPELLING, INSPIRING AND A FITTING TRIBUTE TO JOHN DENVER.......2003-05-08
When I learned of this dramatic account of the recent expeditions to track the planet's northernmost point of land, I knew that it was a must-read. Not only is it an exciting story about adventurers who succeeded in their goal, it brings a fitting tribute to John Denver to the outdoor community. John Jancik, Javana Richardson and Steve Gardiner have offered a book here that parallels Jon Krakauer's bestselling "Into Thin Air."
UNDER THE MIDNIGHT SUN will hold you from page one and as it tells of the ascent of John Denver Peak, it also will teach you about the extreme challenges of high altitude mountaineering and the interactive human factors of survival. A bonus is the inclusion of the fine photography by the late Galen Rowell, who joined the expedition.
Most of us know John Denver through his music, his environmental legacy and his humanitarian work. UNDER THE MIDNIGHT SUN fills in many gaps left by Denver's death in that it explains the beauty and the gift of nature itself in an isolated land free of the commercial drama found on Everest. This is not a trinket named for John Denver, it is the story of men and women who wanted Mr. Denver's legacy to live forever.
You will turn the pages of UNDER THE MIDNIGHT SUN again and again and hold on every word. I am pleased to recommend this book to everyone.
Dreux DeMack
Secretary, Windstar Colorado Connection
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Nothing New Under the Sun
Aesop
Manufacturer: Amarna Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0954965302 |
Amazon.com
J.R. McNeill, a professor of history at Georgetown University, visits the annals of the past century only to return to the present with bad news: in that 100-year span, he writes, the industrialized and developing nations of the world have wrought damage to nearly every part of the globe. That much seems obvious to even the most casual reader, but what emerges, and forcefully, from McNeill's pages is just how extensive that damage has been. For example, he writes, "soil degradation in one form or another now affects one-third of the world's land surface," larger by far than the world's cultivated areas. Things are worse in some places than in others; McNeill observes that Africa is "the only continent where food production per capita declined after 1960," due to the loss of productive soil. McNeill's litany continues: the air in most of the world's cities is perilously unhealthy; the drinking water across much of the planet is growing ever more polluted; the human species is increasingly locked "in a rigid and uneasy bond with modern agriculture," which trades the promise of abundant food for the use of carcinogenic pesticides and fossil fuels.
The environmental changes of the last century, McNeill closes by saying, are on an unprecedented scale, so much so that we can scarcely begin to fathom their implications. We can, however, start to think about them, and McNeill's book is a helpful primer. --Gregory McNamee
Customer Reviews:
One of a kind book on environmental history.......2007-06-04
I wrote my economics undergraduate thesis on development and environmental management back in 1976-77, and surely I would have enjoyed and valued to have Professor McNeill's book in my hands in those years.
His book is remarkable in many ways. It is a well written book, extraordinarly documented and well supported with eye opening statistical tables and illustrations. His material is useful for graduate and undergraduate students alike, and also for wider audiences interested on reviewing a different approach on history's complexities.
As the book front page indicates, the author centers his work on the 20th century's humankind events, termed by himself as the most influential on the process of ecology's evolution.
The book is very well organized so the reader keeps information organized in a properly way. At the end, Professor McNeill leaves many questions open that will be ample material enough to study in the years to come. Among those questions is the one concerned with society's will to deal seriously with environmental crises that have accumulated on the latest decades. We can have a readily answer to that subject if political leaders continue to privilege the narrow view of economic growth, instead of considering to seriously discuss the implementation of more integral strategies that would deliver environmental friendly sustainable economic development at the end.
Without question I recommend this book.
Easy to read and full of history everyone should know.......2006-12-13
This book may be the best historical survey I've ever read. (And with an M.A. in history, I've read a few!) I got this book to complement my hard science slogging on global warming, and found so much more than I hoped for or ever imagined! McNeil's book provides the historical background and the human context for all the graphs and numbers in the science texts. If you're looking for one book to give you a focused overview of just how much human civilization has accomplished, good and bad, in the last 100 years, this is it.
The organization of the book is excellent. McNeil sources everything, ends each chapter with an excellent summary, and wraps it all up with his own thoughtful commentary on climate change. He uses an inspired mix of the small detail (birds dying mid-flight) and the enormous concept (the Aswan dam affected the entire Mediterranean ecosystem). He describes chains of cause and effect and makes connections other historians and scientists seem to miss. The chapters dealing with agriculture are, I think, particularly relevant to our everyday lives; but students in nearly every subject will find this book useful. My husband is a family physician, and has read the sections on public health; my neighbor is a biologist with the USGS, and is reading the chapter on dams and irrigation.
Thomas Midgley's epitaph.......2006-11-11
Sub-titled "An Environmental History of the 20th Century", this is a sober and objective survey of environmental changes over the past 100 years. I was concerned this would be an emotional appeal or judgmental polemic from the left - but not the case, it is academic and professional history from an environmental perspective (the environment, not "environmental movement"). It's encyclopedic in scope and style.
I would not call this an "entertaining" read (although some of the facts really fire the synapses), but it is deeply rewarding as a broad survey of a very large and complex problem. The chapters and sub-sections are arranged in a logical outline making it possible to read the chapters in any order.
The main idea of the title "something new under the sun" is that humans have so fundamentally changed the environment that things really are very different now than they have ever been historically. To regard our current conditions of energy availability, access to water, unending economic growth - as enduring and normal appears to be an interesting gamble given the facts.
Some interesting trivia: humans did not become the dominate primate until about 8,000 BC with the rise of agriculture (baboons outnumbered humans before then). About one-fifth of all humans that ever lived did so in the 20th century. In sheer energy terms, if all modern technology and energy sources were not available, the average American would need about 70 human slaves to maintain the current standard of living (each American "directs" 70 energy-slave equivalents). Each year, humans move more earth and soil than glaciers, wind erosion, mountain building (plate tectonic uplift), and volcanoes combined. Probably the single most damaging biological organism in earths history was the human primate Thomas Midgley Jr from Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania born in 1889. He invented Freon (which destroys the Ozone layer), and also leaded gasoline, which has polluted most of the worlds soil lasting thousands of years (all of us carry elevated lead levels because of it and will continue to do so for centuries to come, leading to birth defects, lowered IQs, etc..). Midgley contracted Polio at age 51 and invented a system or ropes and pulleys to move his crippled body off the bed - he became tangled and was strangled to death in 1944 by his own invention, before learning how damaging his inventions were.
complete.......2006-11-08
This work is very comprehensive and easy to read. Lots of relevant information.
More People, Bigger Cities.......2006-07-20
The issues of population growth are politically charged and center on social forces behind environmental changes. Indians and Africans argue that population growth matters little; Americans and Europeans argue that it matters greatly. McNeil argues that population growth matters vary dependent on effective environmental management of resources.
Two forces were a part of the population surge and reached a crescendo in the 1950s: improved food supply and disease prevention. The improvements caused a decline in mortality. "By 1996 the total annual increment of population had peaked at about 92 million to 95 million more births than deaths". The demographic started first in Europe then in East Asia after 1950 and in progress, in Africa after 1990. "After 1950 the locus of fast growth changed. In the ensuing half century, Asian numbers more than doubled, Latin America population tripled, and African population quadrupled. Meanwhile Europe and North America grew more slowly, having completed the demographic transition by 1950".
Between 1890 and 1990, world population increased by a factor of 3.5 while CO2 climbed 17 fold, 31% associated with population growth; global emissions of sulfur increased 13 fold, ¼ associated with population. "One may safely suppose that population growth had a minimal role in releasing chlorofluorocarbons into the stratosphere". Pollution and combustion were loosely linked to population. In rich societies, such as the US and Germany, additional people raised pollution levels between 1900 to 1970 because they drove cars, heated with oil or coal, and in general increased combustion. In poor societies they had less of a contributing impact for combustion emission. Population growth without significant industry had must less impact on pollution levels except for human waste and domestic smoke.
Population growth both caused and prevented soil erosion. In places where population growth drove food production to steep hillsides, it quickened soil erosion. Elsewhere, population labor built and maintained soil conservation schemes. Soil Salinization caused from salt deposits moved more agricultural land into non-agricultural status. Food demand drove most of the centuries doubling of cropland.
Population growth accounts for much of the world increase use of water. Between 1900 and 1990 water use increased ninefold.
Deforestation is a murky conundrum of environmental issues and population growth. Deforestation occurred in Ethiopia even when population growth rates were lower. Deforestation can occur in conditions of population growth, population stagnation, and population decline. Population growth rarely acts alone causing deforestation.
"In sum, population growth accounted for a modest share of air pollution-related environmental changes and a large share of those pertaining to water and biota, especially those involved in food production."
Mass migrations from humid to dry lands repeatedly provoked desertification or the progress loss of vegetation. Migration into forest zones brought deforestation. Between 1830 to 1920, Europe alone sent 55 to 70 million emigrants to America, Australia, and Siberia. Large groups of Italians migrated to Brazil too work the coffee fields.
Large cities struggle against the costs of managing waste, garbage, and food supply chains. Consider the tempo of change. "A millennium ago China and the Islamic Middle East had the world's most urbanized populations, but even in these lands 90 to 95 percent of the people lived outside cities." In 1700, only five cities had populations exceeding half a million people. By 1900 there were 43 cities with over a half a million and by 1990 about 800 cities and 270 had populations over a million and 14 topped 10 million. England was the first country to have over half its population living in cities, US reached this level in 1920, Japan 1935, USSR and Mexico 1960, S Korea and S Africa 1985. In 1998, the whole world reached this level. The total number of urban dweller rose from 225 million in 1900 to 2.8 billion in 1998, a 13 fold increase.
Cities absorb large quantities of water; in exchange they pump out goods and services, as well as pollutants, garbage, and solid wastes. In the 19th cities with the exception of Japan reeked of garbage. In Surat, a city of 2.2 million in India, one fifth of the garbage went uncollected leading to the bubonic plague of 1994 causing 56 deaths. By 1997, Surat is the second cleanest city in India. "By in large cities did not address pollution that threatened only diffuse, disorganized, or powerless communities." Poor cities rapid acquired the pollution problems from industry and from fleets of cars, buses, and trucks. Only a few societies accumulated enough capital to invest in pollution abatement. Cities remained concentrated nodes of pollution. Growing cities also needed timber, cement, brick, food, and fuel. "Chicago by 1900 exerted a gravitational pull on timber, livestock, grain and other fruits of the land from a huge region in the heart of North America".
Book Description
In an attempt to understand the essence of southern Italian 'sensibility,' Paolicelli sets off on another grand tour of the region, exploring the many fascinating elements of history and culture. In the process, he also explores the phe-nomenal success stories of southern Italian-Americans-most notably Frank Capra and Rudolph Valentino-who left behind everything they knew but still managed to survive and flourish in a new country. This is a wonderful celebration of southern Italy, its people, and its American descendants.
Customer Reviews:
The Americans Italian Immigrants Became..........2006-03-10
Anyone who grew up with an Italian immigrant grandparent or great grandparent, will likely enjoy "Under the Southern Sun." The book explains why your grandfather may have talked little about the family he left behind in Italy or why your grandmother always called pasta "macaroni." Paolicelli aptly explores the culture and history of Southern Italy, the ancestral home of some 26 million Americans.
Comment on "Bad and Facile".......2005-06-02
Bad and Facile must have gotten out of the wrong side of his bed. His tone is snide, his criticisms unfounded, and his inarticulate appraisal unhelpful to an inquiring reader. In 18 lines of text he gives not a single example of his many claims of factual inaccuracy. His "review" gives the impression of an embarassing rant . I do not know the author and have not read his other book, ( but I soon will) however I find author Paolicelli's lucid and fluid prose style reflective of his long career as a professional journalist and supportive of the claim of 3 years of preparation and travel in Italy, fully deserving of all the 4 star ratings on this page. I have given away extra copies to friends with a warm recommendation.
Two in a Row.......2004-06-19
Bravo Mr. Paolicelli. You've penned another great, informative, unique book on Italy that too few will discover and savor.
If you want to learn about the other Italy, as well as its gift to the United States through generations of creative imigrants who brought not only their talents, but their values as well, this is the book for you.
Paolicelli's writing continues to be wonderful (as it was in Dances), his research thorough, and his point of view unprecedented. Those who have journeyed to Southern Italy will want to go back with a fresh set of eyes; those who haven't been will be changing their itinerary to include a southern swing.
Bad and facile.......2004-06-08
I liked "Dances with Luigi", and enjoyed the comments which revealed the author's misunderstandings because he sees everything through American eyes and viewpoints, believing them to be self-mocking and ironic. But this book is shoddy. He is a journalist, but quotes facts and figures without revealing, or it seems even checking, the source. (A bibliography doesn't do it!) When he quotes directly from one person, such as a historian with a cause, it can be accepted as hearsay, but to then base chapters on this hearsay, and not to check the facts, is bad journalism. He makes several elementary errors and he seems unable to understand the mentality of the people he is investigating, seeing them only through his distorted lens of "Southern Italian superhuman, rest of world evil". By the way, Mr P, what also really grates is your constant refences to "Allied" when you mean "American", and your haziness as to when WW2 began in the various countries. There are so many cases where he makes erroneous or sloppy statements, I feel this book was just dashed off quickly on the back of the last one, to boost his daughter's college fund. The problem is, like those dreadful fake patriotic spam emails that keep going around, his "facts" will be repeated by all those people who identify with the premise and have never set foot in Europe and fail to understand a world that isn't USA-centric. Shame on you Mr Paolicelli!
Stereotypes Step Aside to Reveal Pure Italy.......2004-04-14
This eminently readable book -- part Italian history, part personal journal -- dissects the economic and social constructs of the Southern part of Italy in an attempt to understand what it truly means to be Southern Italian and why Southern Italians have gotten such a bad rap in Italy and the U.S.
The author is proudly of Southern Italian descent, and it seems he has a bone to pick. I can certainly understand that -- I am of Southern Italian descent myself, and no stranger to the stereotypes that exist about "my people" -- the mafioso, the ignorant peasant, the shiftless ne'er do well.
The colorful anecdotes in this book do a good job of shattering those stereotypes. Statistics about organized crime and the actual activities of the Mafia seem to show that Italians are not the leaders of the crime world. The apparent "laziness" is actually a social custom, akin to the Mexican siesta, that carried over to the United States, where nobody understood that it was actually a good idea to rest from one's labors during the hottest part of the day.
As for the ignorant peasant claim, yes, the people of the South are not as formally educated as those of the North. But what they lack in book-learning, they make up for in common sense, hard physical work, and heart. They are people of high ideals and close families, and it was ideals (a desire to better their families' lot in life) as well as an unsympathetic government that sparked the mass migration from Southern Italy to the U.S. in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
I have no reason to doubt this author's research; I certainly haven't done any of my own that disputes it. But I did get a distinct "bone-picking" feeling from this book that put me off a little bit. That feeling is the only reason why I didn't give the book five stars.
Overall, however, the book is pure Italy -- a love of life, and thankfulness for what it brings. As the author travels through Southern Italy, the people he meets and the stories he hears paint clear, enlightening pictures of this mysterious and misunderstood land.
I especially loved the (true) story "U Figlio di Giovanni," about a young man who discovers that his father is nothing short of a hero in his home village. I also loved the fact that the author finds his last name popping up all over Southern Italy during his travels. People respond to his name instantly: "That is a name from here. You have a face from here. You are our family." Doors and hearts open, purely on the basis of a familiar -- and therefore trusted and honored -- name.
This book is wonderful, engaging reading for anyone interested in Italian culture, Italian heritage, or searches for identity. It also evokes Italy very clearly, even for someone like me, who's only spent seven days there. I plan to read this book again!
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- Darcy & Elizabeth: Nights and Days at Pemberley (Pride & Prejudice Continues)
- Dark Matter, Missing Planets and New Comets: Paradoxes Resolved, Origins Illuminated Second Edition
- Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries
- Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries
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- Nature's Paintbrush: The Patterns and Colors Around You
- Oaks of Asia
Cabanatuan , Murder Under the Sun.......2004-01-27
