Archive for the ‘books’ Category
Speak Italian Magically by Antonio Libertino
Through the use of both a book and audio files, Speak Italian Magically by Antonio Libertino offers an innovative way to learn Italian — during a “state of relaxed alertness.”
If you’ve ever listened to meditation or yoga music — or type away on OMMwriter as I do — the basic theory behind the audio files will sound familiar to you. Essentially, by putting your brain in a relaxed state, it becomes more open to accepting the new words you are about to absorb.
The listener is instructed to get comfortable and imagine a time when you have learned something important to you — note that these are *not* lessons that you should listen to in your car on the way to work.
The lesson continues with the speaker alternating between Italian and English, side by side, and as the lessons progress, you will hear more and more Italian. I love this concept since we all know, especially those of us who have lived through it, how well the “sink or swim” or more properly called “full immersion” method of language learning works.
You can also follow all of the audio files with the book, which would be extra helpful for someone like me who is a visual learner — I need to see words to remember them, and not just in my mind. I especially love the intermingling of Italian phrases right next to their English counterparts throughout; it does seems that this would help your brain equate the two, especially with the repetition that is built into the lessons and also which you can do on your own.
As someone who already understands and speaks Italian daily, I can’t definitively say whether Speak Italian Magically is an effective way to learn the language. That said, I will say with absolute certainty that I would love to see Antonio also release intermediate and advanced level books and audio files; I truly believe this methodology is something that would work for me to absorb more advanced grammar rules and vocabulary, so I hope future volumes are in the works.
Find more information online: SpeakItalianMagically.com.
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Pieces of Someday by Jan Vallone
Pieces of Someday, the memoir of Jan Vallone, tells the story of an Italian-American woman who, after decades of striving to fulfill the wishes of her parents, comes to realize that she hasn’t yet discovered her true self.
So, at age 44, Jan leaves her law practice to teach English in a yeshiva high school — perhaps a curious career move for a Catholic lawyer, but there’s no doubt that for Jan, a whole new journey had begun. Jan’s search to balance her career and family with her own individual pursuit of happiness had been a lifelong struggle, but once she began following her heart, good things followed.
The book takes us through Jan’s life in New York, Seattle, and various trips to Italy — and she never skims over the difficult parts, namely a strained relationship with her father, marital problems, infertility, and struggles with her own faith. Instead, Jan carries us with her through her conflicting emotions and values, often with a sense of dry humor that I found entirely relatable.
Jan’s word selection is superb and her rich descriptions pick up the reader and gently drop her into each scene. One of my favorites is toward the end of the book when Jan and her family go to Sicily to see the remembrance of her grandmother that, as family legend had it, her grandfather had erected back in their small village of Castelvetrano:
We walked silent, filed around it, skirting a rusty railing collapsed at its feet. The grotto — ivy shrouded, suckers crumbling its surface, shoot tips tasseling its mouth. Inside, bird-soiled Mary prayed with fingerless rosary-strung hands, and the altar, sooty, fractured, was ankle-deep in trash. Outside in the porcelain photo, my grandmother, half my age, smiled above the tarnished plaque….
I give Pieces of Someday four espresso cups out of five and recommend it to anyone who has struggled with balancing what is expected of you with what you truly want — and also to those who simply enjoy good, descriptive writing.
More about the book:
Pieces of Someday has won two Reader Views Reviewers Choice Awards, placing first nationally in the memoir category and first across genres in the Pacific region. It is also now available on Kindle ($5.99 as of this writing).
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Beyond the Pasta by Mark Leslie
Beyond the Pasta by Mark Leslie on Amazon
Our most recent guest on the Eye on Italy podcast was Mark Leslie,* author of Beyond the Pasta: Recipes, Language & Life with an Italian Family, published by Gemelli Press.
I received a copy of Mark’s book last Thursday afternoon, just in time to do a little interview prep for Monday evening’s taping. I was hoping to get at least most of it read by the time we’d be speaking with Mark — and that turned out to be no problem at all. I flew threw this book in just a couple days. To be honest, I wish I could have savored it a bit more but the approaching interview gave me an excuse to keep picking it up. And believe me, no one had to twist my arm to do so.
Beyond the Pasta is about Mark’s month with an Italian family in Viterbo, learning both the Italian language and Italian cuisine. The book is Mark’s journal of experiences during that time, each curiosity and peculiarity noted and explored, with mysteries often left to be answered in subsequent chapters. I particularly enjoyed how we live through Mark’s time in Viterbo without misunderstandings corrected until they were done so in real time, even something so basic as the nickname of one of his hosts — I think many of us can identify with mishearing/mispronouncing/misunderstanding Italian names you’ve never heard before!
Mark Leslie, Author of Beyond the Pasta
Oh, and as an added bonus, you get nearly 30 of Nonna’s authentic Italian recipes, including a previously secret ricetta for what looks to be a delicious yogurt cake Mark calls “Cuppa Cuppa Cuppa” because the ingredients are measured out using the empty yogurt cup.
Mark’s love for both Italian culture and his adopted family shines through his writing; his enthusiasm is contagious and kept me turning pages. I was truly sad when Mark’s time with his adopted family was over and even shed a tear or two. I remember very clearly what it was like to leave Italy reluctantly, and all that came flooding back to me with Mark’s words.
Even as someone who has lived in Italy for seven-plus years, I found Mark’s story lively and engaging — and believe me, that doesn’t always happen for me with books in this genre. I highly recommend this book for anyone who loves Italy and all things Italian; of course it would make a perfect holiday gift for the Italophile on your list.
You can keep up with Mark at his website BeyondThePasta.com, follow him on Twitter @beyondthepasta, and like his book on Facebook at Beyond the Pasta.
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SARK’s Big Purple Dream Crayon *Free* Teleclass
Lately I’ve been delving further into the concepts of inspiration and simplicity. Reading posts at places like Leo Babauta’s Zen Habits, Chris Guillebeau’s The Art of Non-Conformity (as well as his fabulous new book by the same name), and my dear friend Diana’s a certain simplicity*, I’ve come to realize that I’ve been moving in this direction for a long time — at least seven years, in fact, since when I left behind a budding legal career and moved to rural Italy.
Living Juicy on Amazon
But really it dates back even farther than that to when I saw a book by SARK laying around the dorm room of one of my college friends. I’m fairly certain my path to a non-traditional lifestyle (for lack of a better term) started the moment I picked up Living Juicy: Daily Morsels for Your Creative Soul. I still refer to it and other SARK books frequently.
Have you heard of SARK? To me, her books and writings are like candy — they are sweet, give me a jolt to get moving, and always leave me wanting more. And in fact, I see a lot of SARK in the recent surge of websites about simple, non-conformist living; SARK was a true pioneer of this movement IMHO.
But if you don’t know SARK, how can I explain the wonder that is Susan Ariel Rainbow Kennedy? From her Facebook page, she “has been a transformative teacher and leader for over twenty years. She has written and created 16 best-selling books, and hundreds of products. She is the founder and Creative Fountain of Planet SARK, her company that creates products and services to support empowered living.”
Why am I telling you about this now? Well because tomorrow SARK is offering a *free* dream activating teleclass called SARK’s Big Purple Dream Crayon intended to help everyone with a dream reset their dream vibration. This class will provide joyful and practical tools for naming and claiming your dream. It’s free to everyone with a dream, especially if you’re not sure what your dream is:
I’ve already signed up to receive a free recording of the teleclass as it will take place in the middle of the night my time — so if you don’t happen to be available at the time of the teleclass, this is a great option for you as well.
Aside from the teleclass, I also wanted to let you know that I’m looking forward to writing more about my journey toward simplicity and happiness, exploring where I’ve come from, where I am, and where I’m going; I hope you’ll come along with me and even be inspired to make positive changes and chase your dreams along the way as well.
I haven’t decided yet, though, whether Bleeding Espresso is the best forum for this, mixed in with other usual posts about simple life in southern Italy including recipes and finding joy in small things, or whether it would be better served in a new home, on a (*gulp*) new site . . . what do you think?
And what is inspiring you these days?
My Calabria by Rosetta Costantino
My Calabria on Amazon
Rosetta Costantino was born in Calabria and moved to America with her family at age 14. Although they left behind much of what was familiar to them, the Costantino family never lost their culinary traditions — and now Rosetta shares them with us in My Calabria: Rustic Family Cooking from Italy’s Undiscovered South.
When paging through My Calabria, you feel like an honorary member of the family at the table as you learn about how Rosetta’s father recreated their Calabrian garden in Oakland, California; how various members of the family make the same dish; and also the 11 ingredients every Calabrian pantry should have on hand.
Rosetta also shares information about the historical and cultural influences on Calabrian cuisine and lifestyle, so aside from being a wonderful collection of recipes (150) that includes appetizers through dessert, My Calabria is simply a wonderful resource book on the region — you’re getting so much more than a cookbook here.
The recipes themselves are authentic as they come and easy to follow — one of the best things about Calabrian cooking is that it’s user-friendly as it uses so few ingredients — and the book is just gorgeous. There are plenty of full-page and other sized color photos throughout, not only of recipes but also of various sights from around Calabria.
From a personal standpoint as someone who has been making Calabrian food ever since I could cook — first from my grandmother’s recipes and now also from P’s mom’s — I give this book five very full espresso cups out of five. Rosetta is a wonderful tour guide through this region’s food, history, and culture, and I highly recommend My Calabria for anyone who is interested in Calabria, southern Italy, or southern Italian cuisine.
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You can find out more about Rosetta, her book, and her culinary tours at Cooking with Rosetta and her blog, Calabria from Scratch. You can also listen to Rosetta’s interview in the Eye on Italy podcast, which I co-host.
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Michelle Kaminsky is an American attorney-turned-freelance writer who lived in her family's ancestral village in Calabria, Italy for 15 years. This blog is now archived.
Calabria Guidebook
Recipes
