The cafoni (peasants) of Fontamara, a village in Abruzzo, #Italy are poor and exploited, but things are going to get much worse. They have being tricked into giving up their sole access to water (a stream needed for irrigation) by the local podestà, and their rights, such as they are, are disappearing with Mussolini's rise to power. Serious politics told with humour. ⬇
#FoodandLit @Texreader @Butterfinger @Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick
panNot a lucky pick for #foodandlit
What a drag...nothing happens, there is no coherent story or theme, the number of names and characters is completely insane and all of this is normal for someone's diary, but why would anyone publish this and expect anyone else to be able to follow.
Not everything a poet writes is poetry. It really feels like a grab for money and saving on editing if any was done at all.
@Catsandbooks @Texreader
so-soThe writing for this was pretty good, and it was easy to read. But I can‘t say I really enjoyed it?
I didn‘t like Elio or Oliver. It was the obsession, shame, and very weird “intimacy” that seemed to be the over-riding theme throughout. I‘m not sure I would say it was romance between them…
Also much prefer when books have regular natural stopping points like chapters rather than parts or continual flow 🤣
This was my #FoodAndLit pick for #Italy
repost for @Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick
#FoodAndLit in January 2026 we travel to CAMBODIA
To participate, read a book that takes place in Cambodia or is written by a Cambodian author. Try some food from the country, too. Share your experience by using #foodandlit and tag your hosts @Texreader @Butterfinger @Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick
No required reading, just participate when you can.
#FoodAndLit in January 2026 we travel to CAMBODIA
To participate, read a book that takes place in Cambodia or is written by a Cambodian author. Try some food from the country, too. Share your experience by using #foodandlit and tag your hosts @Texreader @Butterfinger @Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick
Please let me know if you'd like to be added to or removed from our tag list. No required reading, just participate when you can.
pickI started reading on Nov 5. Each letter or essay had to be analyzed carefully before moving to the next. As an Algerian born Frenchman, he fought for equality in his homeland, he fought for humanity, but was forced into exile. He stated how the indigenous Algerians fought for France during WW II so they should not be abandoned. He stood up for the minute communities and their differences, and how the new government should reflect the differences.
In honor of #FoodAndLit #Italy I made spumoni cookies. I am in love with them- they will definitely go in my every year rotation. Definitely worth the effort to make the 3 separate doughs. https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/spumoni-cookies/
An 18-c novella about an overconfident young Spaniard touring #Italy. He summons the Devil who appears with a camel's head, then turns into an attractive young woman. The expected happens: they fall in love. Will he come to his senses, or will he be saved by his strong sense of honour, his courage, & his filial love for his mother (all the clichés about Spanish people)? Soft pick
#FoodandLit @Texreader @Butterfinger @Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick
Also, the parallels with the current rise of illiberal regimes are clear.
A great find, and I'll be looking for the other books in the trilogy.
Pic of a stream in the Abruzzo National Park by Lucius, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons