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.Under The Tuscan Sun [2004]

starring: Diane Lane, Sandra Oh, Lindsay Duncan, Raoul Bova, Vincent Riotta
directed by: Audrey Wells

September 20, 2004
Everytime I watch this film its as if I've been whisked off to Tuscany, it makes you feel a part of the story. A beautiful setting for a lovely story about finding happiness.
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.A Year in the World

by: Frances Mayes

April 02, 2007
In my opinion, the previous reviews are a little harsh. I loved Mrs Mayes' books "Under the Tuscan Sun" and "Bella Tuscany" and couldn't wait to read about her travels further afield. I wasn't disappointed.

Mayes and her husband Ed pack their bags for a series of holidays, including Portugal, Spain, France, England, Scotland, Turkey, Greece and various Italian destinations. What we are reading is her personal travel diary. She often makes references to writers who lived and worked where she visits, and I think that sometimes she chooses her destinations on this basis. This is something I see has been criticized in some Amazon reviews, but Mrs Mayes is a writer and a professor of creative writing, it makes sense she would want ... Read More:
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.The Hills of Tuscany: A New Home in an Old Land

by: Ferenc Mate

July 05, 1999
I looked for and bought my own bit of Tuscan paradise after I read Frances Mayes' Under the Tuscan Sun. I thought that it could not be bettered. Mate has written a different sort of book - which may even equal Mayes. Only time and subsequent re-readings will tell.

I am ashamed to say that I only discovered Mate's The Hills of Tuscany just now - nearly 10 years after its original publication. Mate and his wife Candace set out on their search for their Tuscan dream house while renting a house near the gorgeous unspolt village of Palazzuolo Alto, Monte San Savino, as their base. I know the area very well and this part of the book is extremely evocative to me, including their descriptions of the trattoria Il Cacciatore (still going strong ... Read More:
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.Vanilla Beans and Brodo: Real Life in the Hills of Tuscany

by: Isabella Dusi

May 07, 2002
I really found this book self-absorbed and trivial and therefore incredibly annoying. If you know anything at all about beautiful, interesting Tuscany it adds nothing further to your experience or understanding, and if you don't know the place then it gives you nothing either. It's not well-written and the writer makes inexcusable and elementary errors of Italian. Of all the many "ex-pat living the simple life in the Mediterranean" books on the market this is not one that I can say has anything at all to recommend it. I would give it 0 stars if I could.
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.In Tuscany

by: Frances Mayes

October 26, 2000
Some quite nice photography, some good recipes and some very pleasant insights and memoirs did not add up to the sum of its parts for me.
I felt this was like an advert for the businesses in and around Cortona but it's probably still worth purchasing if you are a Tuscan addict! Certainly I commend you to stay in this area and I know you will love Ricardo and Silvia Barcacchi's "Il Falconiere" if not to stay in then at least try out the resurant. Here you can experience Slow Food at it's finest.
If you are a keen cook then Elizabeth Romer's "Tuscan Year " might suit you better but if you want to learn more about the area then make sure you read at least "Under the Tuscan Sun".
If you just want to read then I recommend "Swan" by the same author.
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.A Small Place in Italy

by: Eric Newby

June 09, 1995
The urge to escape the comforts, routine and refinements of our living conditions to somewhere more challenging, primitive and raw is something that many of us feel - especially those who read books. The books we read can sometimes stimulate the urge, sometimes satisfy it. All I ask of such books is that the author can write well and that he is not boastful.

Eric Newby, especially in "A Small Place in Italy", meets these requirements admirably. Indeed, he ranks for me as a travel writer of near genius. He was almost 50 years old when he and his Italian born wife Wanda took up permanent residence in a ruined farmhouse in northern Italy. His account of the trials and tribulations that followed, the neighbours and the locality, is told in this wonderfully ... Read More:
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.The Reluctant Tuscan: How I Discovered My Inner Italian

by: Phil Doran

May 05, 2005
Oh dear, I really wanted to enjoy this book as I love Tuscany - we have a house there - and it seemed so promising - he's a screenwriter, so am I. But the people they encountered characters were so contrived, just stereotypes - did you really meet this people or did you make them up. Sorry. I didn't get past the first 30 pages and then gave up.
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.Ripe for the Picking

by: Annie Hawes

April 03, 2003
Read this book whilst on holiday in Liguria - quite appropriate considering this is the subject of this outstanding novel by Annie Hawes. It tells the tale of an English woman who has relocated to a little cottage in the hills above Diano Marina, just along the coast from Imperia, in the charmingly un-exploited region of Liguria, Italy. Superbly written, very funny and, as I can personally attest, and accurate portrayal of Ligurian life. This is one of the 'happiest' books I've read in a long time. Thoroughly recommended.
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.Tasting Tuscany: Exploring and Eating Off the Beaten Track

by: Beth Elon

June 05, 2006
I love this book. It's an unusual mixture, a hard book to categorise, but that's its stength. For many who come to Tuscany it's the perfect mixture as the great food and beautiful scenery combined are such a part of the pleasure. Beth Elon suggests driving routes with places to see along the way, then explains the food specialities of each area,lists special places to eat, then gives a few sample recipes from each restaurant. One of the real strengths is the local specialities information, as it really highlights some of traditions and how food can be unique to a particular small location not just 'Tuscany' as a larger region. We have found the restaurants that we've tried from the book to be just as described, with excellent, good value food and have found thanks to the book some ... Read More:
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.Rapid Italian: 200+ Essential Words and Phrases Anchored into Your Long Term Memory with Great Music (Musical Brain Trainer)

by: Marlon Lodge

July 15, 2005
This is an amazing item, I have tried many diferent techniques to learn Italian and this is by far the best. I really do encourage you to buy this you won't regret it. The voices used are really good as well, they saying everything clearly allowing you to understand quicker. The music is also an added bonus it allows the words to stick in your brain faster, and makes the experience alot more enjoyable. With this product its not a matter of having to use it, but you want to use it. Fantastic.
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