I discovered this book on the town library shelf. Author is new to me. I have no idea if he wrote anything else as I haven't seen any other ones on the shelf.
STORY SUMMARY
Peppi is from the Abruzzo region of Italy. He left for America many years ago and recently his beloved wife Anna death. His family, which consists of many cousins, where he and Anna settled in Rhode Island, and his friends and neighbors all thought after the funeral that Peppi would deal with his grief by tending the gardens and taking bike rides. But...Peppi shocks them all by deciding to leave Rhode Island and go back to Villa San Giuseppe, the small Italian village where he spent his childhood...and to the old family mill (il mulino).
Once he is back in Italy, he discovers that his childhood home and the mill where his family made a living has been destroyed in an earthquake. His plan is to fix everything. For now, he moves into a little apartment over the candy factory that his best childhood friend Luca runs, along with Luca's daughter Lucrezia. Luca also has a son named Constanza who is married and has 2 children but Constanza works in the city. Luca keeps himself busy by riding his bike which he brought over from America and tending the flower gardens that Luca and his wife Filomena own and that have been neglected.
Lucrezia's husband, Francesco, died several years ago and she has become a workaholic and has a fiery temper that she often takes out on the candy factory employees. But this is really hiding the pain she feels, still, over her beloved husband's death. When she first meets Peppi, she just considers him an old friend of her father's and quite the eccentric who loves bringing the gardens back to life. But soon, her interest in Peppi deepens. She all of a sudden is changing and soon a tentative romance begins between her and Peppi. Will she be given a second chance at love and will the power of love finally begin to heal life's wounds?
MY THOUGHTS
This book is just beautiful. The setting is exquisite and the character development is rich. There's even quite a bit of humor in this book, mainly from Luca, his wife, and the factory guys.
I loved that this book is "clean". There are no swear words, no explicit s*x scenes and it's just a feel good novel.
It just made me want to go back to Italy and explore this region.
The author totally captures the essence of a small Italian village.....sometimes it seemed like I could smell the pasta and fresh baked bread.
It's a beautiful story of loss and love....and life.
One of the quotes that jumped out at me was:
"....life always seems to be beginning then ending then beginning again, all within itself. It keeps changing and it's like we're always happy and sad at the same time." (Lucrezia speaking)
"it's hard to feel one if you haven't felt the other, observed Peppi. "I think a little sadness now and then makes the happier times like these that much sweeter. It's not healthy to be one or the other all the time." (pg 181, Home to Italy by Peter Pezzelli, c. 2004)
The ending of this book is just endearing. I highly recommend this short read if you enjoy the circle of life stories.
In my opinion, this book is appropriate for ages 14 and older.
On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, I rate this a 10.
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