Revisiting a Favorite Book

The 2002 film adaption of "Howards End"

"Dearest Meg,

It isn't going to be what we expected. It is old and little, and altogether delightful -- red brick. We can scarcely pack in as it is, and the dear knows what will happen when Paul arrives tomorrow. From hall you go right or left into dining-room or drawing-room. Hall itself is practically a room. You open another door in it, and there are the stairs going up in a sort of tunnel to the first floor. Three bedrooms in a row there, and three attics in a row above. That isn't all the house really, but it's all that one notices -- nine windows as you look up from the front garden."  E. M. Forster, Howards End

Howards End by E.M. Forster is one of those books I reread every year or so. It feels like an old friend. Each time I read it I discover some new pearl of wisdom. I picked it up over the summer and read it in a few days. I wondered what made me pull it down this time.

Maybe it's because I have been spending a lot of time at home and this book is very much about the love of a house.

"You are coming to sleep, dear, too. It is in the morning that my house is most beautiful. I cannot show you my meadow properly except at sunrise."

Maybe it's because it was summer and the roses were blooming. Dog-roses play a prominent role on the old brick walls of Howards End.

"The dog-roses are too sweet. There is a great hedge of them over the lawn -- magnificently tall, so that they fall down in garlands, and nice and thin at the bottom, so that you can see ducks through it and a cow."


It could be because I went to England and Scotland in June. We took a train from London to Edinburgh and this book celebrates the romance of train travel.

"Like many others who have lived in a great capital, she had strong feelings about the various railway termini. They are our gates to the glorious and the unknown. Through them we pass out into adventure and sunshine, to them, alas! we return. In Paddington all Cornwall is latent and the remoter west; down the inclines of Liverpool Street lie fenlands and the illimitable Broads; Scotland is through the pylons of Euston; Wessex behind the poised chaos of Waterloo...And he is a chilly Londoner who does not endow his stations with some personality, and extend to them, however shyly, the emotions of fear and love."

It may be that I am craving the kinds of discussions that Margaret and Helen Schlegel host at their London home. My book club's Christmas tea is always so much fun.

"The sisters went out to dinner full of their adventure, and when they were both full of the same subject there were few dinner parties that could stand up against them. This particular one, which was all ladies, had more kick in it than most, but succumbed after a struggle...The dinner party was really an informal discussion club; there was a paper after it, read amid coffee-cups and laughter in the drawing-room, but dealing more or less thoughtfully with some topic of general interest."

It could be because Margaret and Helen Schlegel are two of my favorite heroines. I read Jane Austen in the spring and noticed the trend of sisters with different temperaments appearing in so many classic books. The Schlegel sisters and the Dashwood sisters are probably my two favorite sister acts.

"Helen advanced along the same lines, though with a more irresponsible tread. In character she resembled her sister, but she was pretty, and so apt to have a more amusing time. People gathered round her more readily, especially when they were new acquaintances, and she did enjoy a little homage very much. When their father died and they ruled alone at Wickham Place, she often absorbed the whole of the company, while Margaret -- both were tremendous talkers -- fell flat. Neither sister bothered about this, Helen never apologized afterwards, Margaret did not feel the slightest rancour..." 

Of course it may be the Beethoven concert scene, one of my favorites (especially in the beautiful film adaptation of the book). We booked tickets for a Beethoven concert at the Disney Hall in October.

Photo via here

"It will be generally admitted that Beethoven's Fifth Symphony is the most sublime noise that ever penetrated the ear of man."

But it is probably because Howards End is a classic and classics never go out of style. You can reread them and see something new each time, as well as savor the beauty and universal truths that you already knew were there.

Happy reading. What classic book do you like to revisit?

P.S. I was sad to read about the passing of E.M. Forster's biographer P.N. Furbank last summer. Many years ago when I was just starting out as a freelance book reviewer, one of my first assignments was to review Furbank's landmark biography of Forster for the San Francisco Review of Books. I'll never forget how excited I was to get that job. It was the moment I fell in love with E.M. Forster and his books.

The Love of a House

The drawing room of interior designer Penny Morrison's 1790 Welsh home 

Whenever I read an article about someone finding the perfect house because it speaks to them and they feel connected, I always think of E.M. Forster's 1910 novel Howards End. At the heart of that book is the love a house. Ruth Wilcox deeply loves Howards End, her family home in the English countryside, and instinctively knows that her friend Margaret Schlegel shares her connection to it. She subsequently scribbles a note leaving the house to Miss Schlegel. Of course, upon her death the family tears up the note, ignoring her wishes. But, in the end, Margaret Schlegel gets the house. Somehow it was meant to be hers and she is its spiritual heir. Many of us have had the experience of finding a house that we love. We sense a certain something, a quality that is hard to define. We feel a connection and we are at home. I recently read about two very inspiring instances of this happening, one in Wales and the other in Scotland.

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At the border between England and Wales sits one of the prettiest houses you will ever see, owned by English interior decorator Penny Morrison. After reading a bit about this talented designer, I learned that "prettiness" is one of the hallmarks of her design style. The story of how she came to own and restore her house in Wales is in the most recent issue of Elle Decor. The story is fascinating and the photos definitely fall into the category of "eye candy." I got the feeling that this house spoke to her and she instinctively knew it was meant to be hers.

The boxwood-lined front drive leading to the front of the house

Penny and her husband stumbled upon the house by accident 26 years ago and, although everything needed to be done, they fell in love with the building and its setting. It was basically uninhabitable, but they were thrilled that it was an historic property unspoiled by renovation. They set about restoring the house while retaining its basic structure. Their goal was for every ground-floor room to open onto the garden. Lovely idea! They furnished the entire house, using Penny's beautiful fabric and wallpaper line. The result is a very pretty home that embraces nature.  

The library with curtains made out of fabric designed by Penny Morrison

The dining room with french doors leading out to the garden

The upstairs landing

The guest bath

A guest bedroom with headboard and canopy covered in a linen by Penny Morrison

And the beautiful views. Don't you love a house that feels at one with its setting?
Go here to read more.

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Even more romantic in terms of falling in love with a house is when the property is a ruin and someone sets out to save it. In this case the ruin was a sixteenth-century castle in Scotland, definitely raising the enchantment factor up a couple of notches. The intrepid couple who bought it could see the promise and were not daunted by the task ahead. They had always dreamt of living in a castle. 

Ballone Castle, a sixteenth-century tower house overlooking Moray Firth in Scotland

 This is what happened when Lachlan and Annie Stewart, the founders of Anta, discovered a dilapidated castle that hadn't been lived in for 125 years and set about restoring it. Anta is the Scottish design and architecture firm known for its silk and woolen tweeds and tartans, handmade pottery, and architecture celebrating Scottish vernacular. I found their story here and was fascinated by the scope of what this couple did.

Construction underway

The corner of the castle, which now houses the kitchen, had no roof and one part of the building was propped up on a single stone. The couple lived in a large hut adjoining the ruin while construction took place. They puzzled out how to rebuild what was originally there by finding clues throughout the building. There was one piece of each architectural feature left which showed them how it would have looked. They also studied the history of Scottish castles and their patterns in order to come up with architectural plans.

The project took four years

One of six bedrooms, all of which are accessed by steep and narrow staircases

 The dining area with its thick walls and distinctive windows. The light is gorgeous and I love the touch of tartan plaid, undoubtedly made by Anta.

The finished castle and its magnificent setting, just magical
Go here to read more

The 1992 film of Howards End

There's always a touch of magic that goes into any love affair with a house. Somehow the heart gets involved and all bets are off. I'm always inspired when I read about someone taking on such a labor of love. Especially when they do the research to keep it authentic, preserve a sense of history, and create the house of their dreams.

Making Connections

"The Memoir Club" by Vanessa Bell
E.M. Forster sits on the far right
This painting hangs in the National Portrait Gallery in London

In the novel Howards End, E.M. Forster famously advised us to "only connect." Right now I am making fascinating connections between two books, both of them related to E.M. Forster. One is Where Angels Fear to Tread, Forster's first published novel. The other is Vanessa and Her Sister, an historical novel about Vanessa Bell, Virginia Woolf and the Bloomsbury Group. I dash from one to the other, connecting the dots.

First, Vanessa And Her Sister --

Vanessa And Her Sister by Priya Parmar is about the relationship between the painter Vanessa Bell and her sister the writer Virginia Woolf. In 1905 when the novel opens they were known as the Stephen sisters. Because Virginia was a writer of novels, essays and short stories, it was in her nature to write a prodigious number of letters and keep a diary. Consequently, we know a great deal about her inner and outer life. Vanessa is harder to know. She was not a wordsmith like her sister; her means of expression was canvas and paint. Although her paintings can be seen and her published letters read, there is no diary to reveal her inner life. There is nothing to tell us how she felt when she had to deal with her emotionally unstable sister. Or if she felt overwhelmed by the burden of acting as mother to her three younger siblings -- Virginia, Thoby, and Adrian -- after the death of both parents. There is very little record of her thoughts about the circle of friends who would become known as the Bloomsbury Group or the modern art explosion that was happening in Paris. If only we had more of her words.

Priya Parmar has given them to us in her novel Vanessa And Her Sister. After doing meticulous research into Vanessa's life as well as those around her, she invented a diary for her, as well as a series of postcards, letters and telegrams. It is astonishingly effective. There is an authenticity about these invented documents that rings true, capturing the essence of Vanessa's personality. They illuminate the inner life of this woman who has been relatively unknown until now. She was the glue that held the two groups together, both family and friends. I am halfway through this wonderful book and am impressed with the authentic portrait the author has created.

It is in the story of the Bloomsbury friends that E.M. Forster makes several appearances. Here is a thumbnail sketch of how the Bloomsbury group was formed:

In 1904, after the deaths of both parents, Vanessa moved her family from their childhood home in Hyde Park Gate to the then bohemian neighborhood of Bloomsbury. It was here in the drawing room of their London townhouse that her brother Thoby's friends from Cambridge began to visit and soon established regular at home nights. This group included Maynard Keynes, Lytton Strachey, Desmond MacCarthy, Clive Bell and E.M. Forster. Vanessa and Virginia were the hostesses. Vanessa would eventually marry Clive Bell and Virginia would marry Leonard Woolf, one of the Cambridge friends who was working as a civil servant in India. Lytton would write to him planting the seed for a courtship of Virginia upon his return. Most of the men had been members of the Apostles, an elite, strictly by invitation, all-male debating society of the brightest young men at Cambridge. At 46 Gordon Square in Bloomsbury, they would continue discussing life, art, and friendship.

Here is a scene of a typical Bloomsbury gathering from Vanessa's fictional diary in Vanessa And Her Sister:

"...the drawing room was freckled with several more of Thoby's Cambridge friends, looking the way I always imagined Thoby's rooms at Trinity must have looked, with the intellectual young men draped all over the furniture. Their talk rang out with their affectionate university names for each other: Goth, Mole, Strache, Saxe.
Lytton Strachey had curled farther into his chair and was looking endearingly rumpled, with his round spectacles perched low on his nose and his frizzy red beard even bushier than usual. He was scolding sweet-tempered Morgan Forster about his novel.
'That was indecently quick, Mole, Lytton said dramatically. 'You are meant to suffer, to pine, to ache, to burn. How is the work meant to be art if it arrives with no pain?'
This winter Morgan completed his first novel. It is to be published in the autumn. Everyone talks about writing a novel -- Lytton, Desmond, and of course Virginia -- but Morgan has actually done it."

The book was Where Angels Fear to Tread which is the second book I am reading. It is about a young English widow Lilia, who travels to Italy and falls in love with a handsome but penniless Italian. Her English in-laws are horrified and send Lilia's brother-in-law Phillip to put a stop to this romance and bring her home. By the time he arrives in Italy it is too late as the couple have already married. When a baby is born, the family wants it to be raised English. What follows is a collision of cultures which is at times very funny and also very moving. Forster pokes fun at the hypocrisy and snobbery of Edwardian England and writes lovingly of Italy. Here is another passage from Vanessa And Her Sister:

"'Mole, you have outdone us all!' Lytton said, pulling Morgan to him for a waltz. I stood and pushed the other dining chairs so they would not get knocked over. Round and round the table they went in small uneven ellipses. Maud fetched more place setting and brought back the soup tureen.
'Remarkable! Mastery of material! Keen insight! Mole! This is brilliant!' Thoby said, reading fragments aloud. Virginia, brittle and still, was silent.
'I don't like the title,' Morgan said, as Lytton released him from their dizzying waltz.
'You wanted Monteriano?' I asked. It was the fictitious name he had chosen to conjure the very real towered city of San Gimignano. I think it does capture the cadence and height of that hillside town.
'The Manchester Guardian called the title mawkish -- awful,' Morgan said fretfully, folding and unfolding his neat slim hands.
'Well, I think it is splendid,' Virginia said, unexpectedly. Thoby and I looked at each other, surprised. When Virginia says splendid, that is rarely what she means."

And so I learned that Monteriano, the fictitious Italian city at the center of Where Angels Fear To Tread, was based on San Gimignano. And that Forster wanted Monteriano to be the title of the book. I love connecting the dots. And there is more...

Last week I went to a fascinating lecture on Where Angels Fear To Tread. I learned so much about the book as well as Forster's life. Here are a few highlights:

Forster's great-aunt left him a generous sum of money which meant that Forster never had to get a job and was able to develop his writing skills. Lucky for us. Our lecturer described this bequest as the equivalent of a MacArthur genius grant. Forster's leisure time allowed him to travel to Italy and hence the idea for the book was formed. Its original title was "Monteriano," but a friend advised him to switch it to Where Angels Fear To Tread, which comes from a quote by Alexander Pope: "Fools rush in where angels fear to tread." Good choice since it sounds so much more intriguing. And this book, as our lecturer reminded us, is a story of fools rushing in.

We had a great discussion of Where Angels Fear To Tread, looking at its social satire as well as its moral complexity. We talked about the juxtaposition of two societies: England and Italy. And how Phillip changes from one part of the book to another. He begins as a romantic, retreats into his Englishness, and then comes to embrace the charms of Italy. Our opinion of Gino, Lilia's Italian husband, also changes by the end of the book. At first we suspect his motives for marrying Lilia, but by the book's end we come to admire him. Nothing is black or white in Forster's books; they are filled with complicated characters and psychological depth. I left the lecture with a greater understanding of why Forster's Bloomsbury friends would be so impressed with his accomplishment. Where Angels Fear To Tread would be considered a magnificent first novel for any writer.

I love taking a literary journey from one book to another and learning something new. In this case, E.M. Forster was the common denominator. What a difference a title can make!

What Book is on Your Nightstand?

The new year has arrived and one of my goals for 2015 is to make more time for reading and writing. One of the best sources for book suggestions, as well as literary inspiration, is the The New York Times Book Review. Do you read it every Sunday? Well, if you do then you probably read the column By the Book. Each week a writer is interviewed and asked questions about literature and the literary life.

I love reading the answers to questions such as: What book is on your nightstand? What book made you want to write? If you could meet any writer, dead or alive, who would it be? What is your favorite literary genre? How do you organize your personal library? What books do you find yourself returning to again and again?  

I can't tell you how many times I've torn out this section of the Book Review to save for future use. It is filled with great book recommendations as well as illuminating insights into the writer's life. For example, I read Diary of a Provincial Lady by E.M. Delafield after Sylvia Nasar recommended it as one of her favorite comic novels. And she was right! I read Goerge Eliot's Middlemarch after Anna Quindlen called it her favorite book of all time. And I agreed with her that it is truly a great book. I loved J.K. Rowling's answer to the question: If you could be any character from literature, who would it be? She answered "Elizabeth Bennett, naturally." I felt as if I knew her a little bit better and we were kindred spirits. No matter what the topic, I am always inspired by the passion that these writers have for books.

 I was swept away by John Irving's answer to the question "What book changed your life?"

"Great Expectations. I was fifteen. It made me want to be able to write a novel like that. It was very visual -- I saw everything, exactly -- and the characters were more vivid than any I had heretofore met on the page. I had only met characters like that onstage, and not just in any play -- mainly in Shakespeare. Fully rendered characters, but also mysterious. I loved the secrets in Dickens -- the contrasting foreshadowing, but not of everything.You both saw what was coming and you didn't. Hardy had that effect on me, too, but when I was older. And Melville, but also when I was older."

His answer made sense and its infectious enthusiasm about great writing made me want to sit down immediately and try to write a novel! 

In a stroke of genius, the editor of this column decided to collect 65 of the best interviews and publish them together in a book that is aptly named By the Book: Writers on Literature and the Literary Life from The New York Times Book Review. I got it for Christmas and have spent the last week happily browsing its pages. It was fun to ask myself some of these questions. Here are three which were easy to answer:

1. What book is on your nightstand?

There are three right now: My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante, Summer in February by Jonathan Smith, and The Ambassadors by Henry James

2. What is your favorite book of all time?

To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf

3. Are you a rereader? What books do you find yourself returning to?

Yes, I am a rereader. The three books I find myself returning to again and again are Excellent Women by Barbara Pym, Howards End by E.M. Forster, and The Pursuit of Love by Nancy Mitford. These books never fail to take me to that cozy place I sometimes crave and always make me feel good.

 I would love to know your answers to these questions.

If you are a passionate reader and an aspiring writer, get this book. You will love it!

Haven

"I have never known any distress that an hour's reading did not relieve"

-- Charles de Montesquieu

I love books and continue to prefer them over electronic devices even though they sometimes threaten to take over my house! In fact, my very first blog post four years ago was about the beauty of books. In my opinion, nothing makes a room warmer than a personal collection of books. I love how they bring color, pattern and texture to a room. And they tell us so much about the collector. Recently, after returning from a trip to England and new books arriving daily, I realized it was time to edit the books in my study to make room for the new ones. The goal was to be able to put my hand on whatever title I needed without too much trouble. My system of organization was pretty relaxed with the only rule being to group all books by the same author together. Other than that, I hoped to arrange them in an attractive way to highlight the beauty of the books. Since every book "counts" in this room (no forgettable books here), I should be able to find what I want easily. The topic of this collection would be favorite authors, as well as some new ones from the trip to England. This room would contain literary novels and biographies, mostly English, and very much my "old friends."

 Virginia Woolf and Bloomsbury would be front and center. These are the diaries I found in London. I have been reading Virginia Woolf's books for many years and finding these beautiful editions of her diaries was a highlight of my trip. Seeing her lighthouse in St. Ives was also pretty special!

 Books on her as well as her circle of friends take up a few shelves

 I have been collecting books on the Bloomsbury Group for about 35 years now!

Next were some groupings of favorite authors. I loved getting the Nancy Mitfords and Katherine Mansfields together.

As well as books by E.M. Forster, Elizabeth Von Arnim, and E.M. Delafield. Though it seems that I have many editions of just one title by Delafield, The Diary of a Provincial Lady. This charming book about the life of an ordinary woman living in an English village during the 1930's is laugh-out-loud funny. Go here to read more. I discovered this gem a few years ago and apparently can't resist buying attractive editions.

My beloved Barbara Pym --  I think I've read every one of these

And some lovely Persephone editions -- oh, there's another "Diary of a Provincial Lady"!

Elizabeth Bowen is next to books on reading and writing. This accidental combination makes sense since Bowen's writing is some of the most beautiful and memorable writing you'll ever read. Go here to read more.

My Jane Austen books

Next were the books purchased in London, Cornwall, Devon and the Cotswolds. The goal was to keep all those together so I could have them at my fingertips to remind me of my trip. I have been slowly making my way through them.

So far I have read A Cornish Affair and Ross Poldark. They are both fun, escapist books and they took me back to Cornwall. Ross Poldark is an old-fashioned, swashbuckling tale that I loved and would put under the category of "guilty pleasure."

Some highlights --

This one came highly recommended by one of my readers and I can't wait to read it!

Summer in February is about an Edwardian artistic community set in Cornwall. I am reading this  now and enjoying it. It was made into a film starring Dan Stevens which I may now have to rent.

This one is about a young woman who flees her wedding and hides out in Cornwall doing research on a grand old home and garden. Naturally she is seduced by the beauty of the place as well as the scion of the family who owns the house. A good old-fashioned love story.

I learned about Cider With Rosie while in the Cotswolds. A best-selling (six million copies) nostalgic memoir of finding love during a summer in the Cotswolds, it was published 100 years ago.

Another laugh-out-loud classic of English comedy, also set in the Cotswolds

A collection of recipes from Cornwall and Devon that I found in a bookstore in St. Ives

The third installment of the Old Filth trilogy by Jane Gardam. Go here to read an excellent article about her in the New Yorker magazine.

I found three books by Angela Thirkell -- they are impossible to find here -- at a little book store in the Cotswolds village of Stow-on-the-Wold.

And this book on Beatrix Potter's gardening life, found at Kew Gardens bookstore, was hard to resist.

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A room filled with books is such an inviting sight. I am looking forward to spending some happy hours this winter in my study curled up with a favorite book and a cup of tea!

Old Friends

"The best moments in reading are when you come across something - a thought, a feeling, a way of looking at things - which you had thought special and particular to you.  And now, here it is, set down by someone else, a person you have never met, someone even who is long dead.  And it is as if a hand has come out, and taken yours."

-- Alan Bennett, "The History Boys"

I love this quote from The History Boys by Alan Bennett. It takes my breath away. In fact, I think it is one of the best descriptions of the power of literature. When we connect with what a writer is saying in a book, we have our most powerful reading experiences. If you are passionate about books, this has probably happened to you. Finding a special book to read or reread because it speaks to you is comforting. My bookshelves are filled with old friends.

Many people feel this way about their favorite books. Maybe the feeling comes from knowing the books so well that we can quote from them. We remember a passage that made our heart sing with its lyricism or brought tears to our eyes with its poignancy. Maybe these are the kinds of books that make us feel good when we are a little down and need to be taken to a cozy place. They are the equivalent of a cup of tea by the fireplace on a rainy day. With certain books come moments of truth, wisdom and illumination. The reality of the book reflects our own reality. And we recognize a kindred spirit.

When the four women from Elizabeth Von Arnim's The Enchanted April come together in Italy, find happiness and forge unexpected friendships, many of us have felt that same sense of hope and liberation that comes from a new environment. When Margaret Schlegel of Howards End falls in love with the lovely old house in the country that belongs to Ruth Wilcox, we understand that it represents so much more than just a house. For Ruth it was a connection to the past and to the land; she knows that Margaret is its spiritual heir. We share Margaret's reverence for this house because we have all known houses that have that special something -- a life and a character of their own. When Charles Ryder succumbs to the charms of his best friend's family in Brideshead Revisited, we experienced the same thing when young.  When Mrs. Ramsay in To the Lighthouse describes Minta Doyle's "glow"and how it affects the other characters, we know exactly what she means. Some people just light up a room. When Colette writes about the relationship between a mother and daughter in Break of Day, her reflections on this powerful bond illuminate many of our own experiences. And when we read the final line of The Great Gatsby, we are filled with awe.

One of the books I have returned to many time is Mrs. Dalloway.  I am in love with the beauty of the writing and the realness of the heroine Clarissa Dalloway. The best novels take us out of our lives and put us into someone else's. When Clarissa walks out of her London house on a June morning to buy the flowers for her party, I am in her head and feel her joy. And that joy is just one part of the larger tapestry of thoughts and feelings she experiences all day long. As readers we are on this journey with her. And the last line of the book is one of the best closing lines of any novel.

  Do you have books that have spoken to you over the years and feel like old friends?

Top photo via Pinterest    

Dreaming About Italy

Ravello, Italy

Photo via here

Happy Summer!  What are your vacation plans?  I will be staying close to home most of the time, but I have been dreaming of far flung destinations.  Especially Ravello, Capri, Positano...oh those names conjure up such beautiful images.  Gorgeous scenery, delicious food, great wines, the Mediterranean, magnificent views, glamour, getting away from it all...  I have never traveled to this region, but its beauty is legendary. Twice in one day two different friends mentioned Ravello to me. One was on her way there for a  vacation (lucky girl!) and another was reading a book set in Ravello.  I am half Italian and spent a lot of time with my Italian grandparents when I was young.  They were always cooking delicious food for me and "mangia bene" was a frequent refrain in their house. My grandfather had a vegetable garden in his backyard and I spent many happy hours there as a child wandering through the tomato plants and swinging on the hammock.  I have always wanted to go to Rome and Naples, their birthplaces, and trace the footsteps of my ancestors.

Venice, 2005

I have been to Italy once and oh, how I loved it!  We went to Venice, Florence, and Rome, the three cities that I imagine everyone starts out with.  However, I am hoping one day to travel to the Amalfi Coast and experience the true La Dolce Vita.  In the meantime, I am gravitating towards books about Italy.  Summer is here and Italy beckons. There are so many good ones to choose from:

Who can forget the scene in "The Enchanted April" when Lottie, one of the four Englishwomen who have traveled to Italy, throws open the windows of their Tuscan villa and sees their Italian paradise for the first time.  That setting has transformative powers for all of them.

E.M. Forster's first novel is about his signature themes:  the collision of cultures and the hypocrisy and snobbishness of Edwardian England.  The story concerns an English widow who goes to Italy and marries an Italian.  I haven't read this one for a while, but I remember enjoying it.  I love this new edition by Vintage Classics.

"A Room With a View" is a gem, romantic and optimistic, once again about young people escaping their restrictive lives and finding love and happiness in Italy.  And who can forget the beautiful movie starring Helena Bonham Carter and the scene where Lucy Honeychurch and George Emerson walk in the meadow carpeted with bluebells!

This book must have been responsible for a surge of people buying and restoring villas in Tuscany. Frances Mayes made it sound so romantic and life in Tuscany so beautiful and simple.

"A Year int the World" is another book by Frances Mayes that I have been reading.  She writes about the allure of travel and the many places that she has visited all around the world and what they have meant to her.  I love her thoughtful reflections about travel.  She visits many spots in Italy outside of Tuscany.

A vintage book on Italian cooking given to me by my daughter, don't you love the cover?

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And here are some that I have accumulated over the years, but haven't had a chance to read:

In these essays Henry James writes of the qualities he admires about Italy, as well as the political shifts and cultural revolutions he observed at the time (from 1872 -1909).

"Innocence" by Penelope Fitzgerald is described as a "delectable comedy of manners" that takes place in Italy in 1955.  The story concerns an old Florentine family struggling after the war to keep their villa and farm going.

Author Shirley Hazzard writes about her friendship with the writer Graham Greene on the island of Capri.  He came to Capri each summer for years and it was there that they formed their friendship. 

"A Book of Secrets" sounds intriguing, the subtitle is "Illegitimate Daughters, Absent Fathers." It tells several different stories that took place in the beautiful and mysterious Villa Cimbrone in Ravello.  Can't wait to read this one.

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Monique at her blog Bringing Travel Home just mentioned a new book "La Bella Lingua" about the beauty of the Italian language.  The author Dianne Hales writes about her "love affair with Italian, the world's most enchanting language."  It sounds excellent!

Many writers have celebrated the beauty and pleasures of Italy in their books, using Italy as a metaphor for love and liberation.  Elizabeth Von Armin, E.M. Forster, and Henry James all wrote about characters finding themselves in Italy. Tell me, are you dreaming about Italy and if so, what books are taking you there?  Have you been to Italy?  Please tell me about your favorite region or city. We can all be armchair travelers!