Travelers' Tales Italy: True Stories

by Anne Calcagno, Jan Morris, Anne Calgagno

Release Date: 09 September, 2001

Edition: Paperback

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Silly, offensive, and patronizing

In the introduction we are regaled to a reminder of the stereotype of the Italian gangster or buffoon. There is a story about a casual sexual encounter that seems entirely out of place in this day of AIDS. Italian men are portrayed as habitually unfaithful to their wives ("The Italian Mistress"). There are excerpts that characterize the "average Italian citizen" as an inveterate cheater. Italians, we are told, are breast-obsessed. This book is a paradigm of the sort of travel writing that romanticizes the exotic "other." I see no reason to think that this brings anyone closer to the "real" Italy and it is silly and simplistic to think otherwise. It would appear that in these days of political correctness it is still considered acceptable to portray Italians in a patronizing way, in contrast with almost every other group or ethnicity. This book is insulting both to Italians and to the reader's intelligence.

Another great Traveler's Tales

This book, like all of the Traveler's Tales books, is the product of thoughtful editing. Here are stories of real people in Italy. And each one seeks to show the beauty and complexity of the place. These are not just the stock images here. These are beautiful, sometimes intense stories about a place that, for so many, is out of reach. This book is a journey. Good, Bad, Ugly and perfect, flaws and all. Read it, enjoy and then, go.