Bella Tuscany

September 15, 2004
Frances Mayes made a name for herself writing about her love affair with Tuscany, where she bought and refurbished an abandoned villa. She tells the full story in Under the Tuscan Sun: At Home in Italy (Broadway. 1997. ISBN 0-7679-0038-3. pap. $15); Bella Tuscany: The Sweet Life in Italy (Broadway. 2000. ISBN 0-7679-0284-X. pap. $15); and In Tuscany (Broadway. 2000. ISBN 0-7679-0535-0. $35).

Copyright 2004 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 1, 1999
The fairy tale continues. Mayes, whose surprise best-seller, "Under the Tuscan Sun" (1996), described the ordeal of buying and restoring a Tuscan farmhouse, now checks in with the next chapter of her idyllic story. The house restored, the garden growing, the language nearly mastered, Mayes and her epicurean husband, Ed, are now free to enjoy the sweet life. And so they do, in more al fresco lunches at Bramasole (their dream house), on jaunts to Sicily and Venice, and in a never-ending string of perfect meals with impeccable ingredients. And let's not forget their circle of storybook friends, both Italian and expatriate, always ready with a helping hand, a green thumb, or an apt anecdote. The pleasures that were the first book--thoughtful prose, vivid evocation of the Tuscan countryside, beguiling recipes--are all present here, too, but it would take a saint to read this volume and not want Mayes, just once, to eat a bad fava bean. Maybe it was the trauma of the house restoration that gave the first book a little frisson, but here it's just one damn perfect thing after another. (The last straw gets drawn back in San Francisco when Mayes and the devoted Ed decide, on a whim, to buy an Italian-style house in California. Naturally, they find the perfect place in one throw of the dice.) One can't fault an author for her good fortune, of course, but perfection is not an easy subject to write about. It's been observed that a dream deferred is like a raisin in the sun. There are no raisins in Mayes' Tuscan sun. ((Reviewed February 1, 1999))(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 1999, American Library Association.)

December 1, 1998
After the best-selling Under a Tuscan Sun.

April 15, 1999
Writing again about Tuscany, Mayes continues to acquaint readers with the delights of Italy. This book follows Under the Tuscan Sun (LJ 9/1/96), Mayess popular account of falling in love with Tuscany and purchasing an old villa for her summer vacations. Now Mayes, on sabbatical from her teaching position in San Francisco, is experiencing Italy in the early spring with her friend and soon-to-be-spouse, Ed. Together they continue work on their house, selecting plants for the garden, pots for the piazza, and tiles for the bathroom. In between projects, they find time to explore regions beyond Tuscany, including Sicily and Venice. Mayes writes with a poets attention to sensuous detail, whether describing a six-course meal (she provides recipes), a fresco in a little-known church, or the challenges of learning Italian. She describes village life with all its warmth, friendliness, and individuality, in sharp contrast to the growing impersonality and homogeneity of America. Recommended for all public libraries. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 12/98.]Nancy R. Ives, SUNY at Geneseo