🍝🍝🍝🍝🍝
The View from Lake Como
Adriana Trigiani
415 pages
Dutton Publishing
This is the first book I have read by Adriana Trigiani and it will not be the last. I thoroughly enjoyed this experience and highly recommend it to anyone who:
1) Loves to armchair travel.
2) Has not figured out what they want out of life and likes to read books about similarly situated characters.
3) Loves Italian food and does not mind being made hungry.
4) Wants to feel immersed in or enjoys watching The Sopranos.
There is seldom a time in my reading life that I have benefitted from and loved traveling in my reading; an international location is always a plus. Italy is a bonus because I have been there and know how lovely it is and I want to return to see the many places there that I have not seen. This novel was an even bitter treat because it did not take place in Rome or Venice, where I have been. In other words, it is a preview of (hopefully) coming attractions. Life is exceedingly real these days and exotic locations in a book are like Calgon; just take me away (that line will be wasted on those who have not seen the old ad).
At 64, I have still not figured myself out and probably never will. I am always a sucker for a good internal conflict. This book makes that possible by having the protagonist see a therapist virtually, much to her family’s chagrin. The device is a little cheesy but since it makes the rest of the book work so well, it doesn’t matter.
Italian food. In a novel. Food is love. True in books. True in life. Nothing more needs to be said.
It does feel a little bit like The Sopranos, with a little less violence. There is some criminal activity but low level, so there is that. I liked the show, so this was a plus for me.
There were other things that I enjoyed too. I liked the banter among the friends and family members. The dialogue was engaging and periodically amusing, causing me to laugh out loud. I also thought the characterization was stellar, partially because of the dialogue. This applies not only to the protagonist but also to some of the other characters.
I think that this novel may well be on my top ten for the year; time will tell.
My reviews here are also posted on the blog, The Book Review Crew and on my instagram page, Susan_is_reading.
Leave a Reply