That Summer in Sicily: A Love Story
That Summer in Sicily: A Like Tale Books
- ISBN13: 9780345497666
- Shape up: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
Product Description
“At villa Donnafugata, long ago is never very far away,” writes bestselling author Marlena de Blasi of the magnificent if to some extent ruined castle in the mountains of Sicily that she stumbles upon one summer even as traveling with her spouse. There de Blasi is befriended by Tosca, the patroness of the villa, who shares her own unforgettable like tale. In a luminous and provoking voice, de Blasi re-makes Tosca’s life and romance with the last prince of Sicily descended from the French nobles of Anjou. But when Prince Leo attempts to better the lives of his peasants, his defiance of the local Mafia expenditure him dearly. The bestow-day narrative finds Tosca sharing her extensive inherited wealth with a harmonious society composed of many of the women–now widowed–who once worked the prince’s land alongside their husbands. This marvelous epic drama reminds us that in order to live a rich life, one must embrace both life’s mourn and its beauty.
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I have devoured each of De Blasi’s other books and I reckon about them often. She captivated me with her style of writing and her passion. This latest book just did not grab hold of me in the same way. It’s written in lovely style but I just don’t care about the ones written about as much as I have in the other offerings. I guess I like to hear about Marlena, her spouse and their interactions with locals in each of the places they have lived.
Rating: 3 / 5
Brilliant tale I had read it from the local library and bought it for a supporter’s birthday. I also urge author’s other titles, A thousand Days in Venice and a Thousand Days in Tuscany. For anyone who likes Italy as much as I do, Both of my paternal grandparents were born there.
Rating: 5 / 5
Marlena De Blasi has had the most incredible life, and is a wonderful novelist. As an Italophile I loved every word that she ever wrote. And this is the latest one that I have read. My head is spinning and I am plotting another trip to Italy. Perhaps to Sicily. It is truly a fairy tale. You must read it!!!!!
Rating: 5 / 5
That Summer in Sicily by Marlena di Blasi was an adventureous and gorgeous tale filled with pain and triumph. Told by di Blasi in her descriptive, florid language it was a feast for the senses, as she transports you to a world half a world away, making you see and experience everything with her and Tosca.
All the other reviews describe Tosca’s and Leo’s tale accurately, so I will not describe it here. Be enough it to say that its as unbelievable, enchanting and magical as only real life can be. Read it, savor it. Find yourself humbly admiring the strengh of the human spirit. What stands out in this book, but, is not the epic like tale between two people but the epic struggle to do what is aptly.
Tosca and Leo walked the walk. In a sense, they paid with their lives for it, reminding us of something we all know but often choose to forget: to whom much is given, much is also expected. In addition, their spirits truely shone through the pages, showing them to be, well, human. As gorgeous and intelligent as they both were, they weren’t perfect. And thats the beauty of this tale–that you don’t need perfection to do what is aptly or lead a life worthy of praise.
Marlena, this book has made me want to stay Sicily and look up Tosca just to be in her powerful presence. I thank-you and Tosca for sharing this inspiring tale.
Rating: 5 / 5
In “That Summer in Sicily,” author Marlena de Blasi shifts focus from her own memoirs (which bracket the tale) to tell the tale of Tosca Brozzi and her lover, Leo, the last prince of the area. During a summer of traveling and writing, de Blasi and her still-new spouse arrive at Villa Donnafugata (literally “The House of the Driven-Out Women”), a community of women of all ages, who are living together in relative peace and harmony. After a few days in the villa, Tosca confides her tale to de Blasi, which forms the bulk of the book.
The traditions she evokes are fascinating and other-worldly: the gorgeous maiden, handsome prince, bitter wife, jealous siblings and external risk, in the form of a Mafia boss. De Blasi seems incapable of having an run of the mill moment – even such mundane aspects of life as washing and braiding hair take on an nearly religious significance. Tosca’s community and its traditions provide an intriguing glimpse into a very different way of living.
Why, then, only three stars? Quite simply, the narrative bogged down in the middle, at least for me. Leo’s tale and reforms, the “inevitable doom” hanging over him, just didn’t draw me in the way day-to-day life in the villa did, or even Tosca’s childhood narrative. We all know it’s not going to end well, so his clash was nearly predictable. The twist at the end was a surprise, but since I hadn’t been very engaged in Leo’s tale, it was only intellectually fascinating.
It’s an fascinating thought and de Blasi tells a excellent tale, but I didn’t delight in it as much as her other works.
Rating: 3 / 5