American chef Marlena de Blasi and her Venetian husband, Fernando, married rather late in life. In search of the rhythms of country living, the couple moves to a barely renovated former stable in Tuscany with no phone, no central heating, and something resembling a playhouse kitchen. They dwell among two hundred villagers, ancient olive groves, and hot Etruscan springs. In this patch of earth where Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio collide, there is much...

Frances Mayes, whose enchanting #1 New York Times bestseller Under the Tuscan Sun made the world fall in love with Tuscany, invites readers back for a delightful new season of friendship, festivity, and food, there and throughout Italy.
Having spent her summers in Tuscany for the past several years, Frances Mayes relished the opportunity to experience the pleasures of primavera, an Italian spring. A sabbatical from teaching

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Seeking some peace and quiet from renovations at via Del Duomo, Marlena de Blasi escapes to the mountains of Tuscany where she meets the extraordinary Antonia, imperious matriach of four generations of strong-willed Tuscan women. The next volume of memoir from the author of the international bestseller A Thousand Days in Venice.

"Hidden Tuscany vividly displays the coastal areas of Tuscany, a territory often overlooked by visitors to Italy eager to see Chianti, Florence or Siena. Veteran journalist and Italophile John Keahey points out the keen distinctions that the western cities maintain: in food, lifestyle, and the way its artists are paving new directions in art that differ mightily from the Renaissance-rich interior. Keahey interviews sculptors and their artigiani, craftsmen...

It's September, time for the annual grape harvest in Tuscany. Will Claudia overcome her fear of heights and climb the ladder to the big tub where the grapes are stomped?

A portrait of the Victorian-era writer and Anglo-Florentine colony doyenne covers her work for the London "Times," achievements as an avid agriculturalist, and relationships with such contemporaries as Mark Twain and Bernard Berenson.

"What is it about Italy and Italians? Italian movies immortalize the mystique. Fellini called it La Dolce Vita. Tornatore's Cinema Paradiso took James Shaw back to the sweet memories of his childhood and the Italian family who operated the hometown theater. And just like in the movie, young James had an Alfredo who, by example, taught him about serving people. James learned that Italians don't feel they're special. Luigi Barzini, author of The Italians,...