Under the Tuscan Sun: At Home in Italy

Under the Tuscan Sun is a wonderful and humorous look at what happens when an American couple decides to purchase and convert an ancient pile of stone rooms into a home in the Italian countryside. The book reveals how cultural differences and the elements can conspire to slow the progress of even the most diligent expatriate. Mayes shows us with love and humor what it took for her to finish her project, while she falls deeply in-love with her new land.
The book is a joy to read. I heartily disagree with a previous reviewer who stated "..stick to Peter Mayle." I love Mayle's work, and fell that Mayes does for Tuscany what Mayle did for Provence. If you liked his work, you will undoubtedly enjoy this.

I greatly enjoyed reading about the experiences of an American woman who decided to take a giant leap of faith onto another shore. Her descriptions of the land, food, and personalities of the people she has met in Italy reveal her appreciation for this place, and her willingness to flow with its rhythms. Her ability to share her world without becoming too much the center of it made me want to know even more about her as a person. She never claims to be an expert on Italian life, only familiar with her own life in that place. Her writing style is friendly and easy. I am reading "Bella Tuscany" now, and am enjoying it just as much.

I bought this book because I simply adore the movie. This book is not the movie. The movie took a few lines from it here and there, but it is not the same story. There is no Katherine, no Marcello, no Pawel, no Patti, etc. The entire plot of the movie doesn't exist at all in the book. If you loved the movie and you're wanting to dig deeper into that story by buying the book you'll be disappointed. But if you've never seen the movie, and you just want a snap shot of an American's life in Italy it's not bad.

The author, a professor at San Francisco State University, loves Tuscany, Italy. She often spent summers there. One summer, at the spur of the moment, she decides to buy a second home there. She describes the Tuscan people, land, culture and food like only one would who has an extreme love of the area. Her book was so popular, that Hollywood could not resist in turning it into a major motion picture starring Diane Lane. Frances Mayle's recipes in the book are easy to follow and delicious! Some of the recipes included in this novel are Hazelnut Gelato, Folded Peach Tart with Marscapone, Cherries Steeped in Red Wine and Basil & Lemon Chicken!

In `Under the Tuscan Sun,' Maynes masterfully turns simple words into a beautiful song, magically capturing the essence of Bramasole-and the reader's heart. From the very beginning, readers can feel the pull of Italy and the sense of longing that draws Maynes to the rundown country house. As the house is lovingly and painstakingly restored, we fall in love with Bramasole, Cortona and Tuscany.

The lush rose garden, vibrant landscape, and olive groves all come alive through Maynes' writing. The book is truly a feast for the senses. Readers can feel the hot summer sun, smell the perfume of the abundant lilacs, touch the cool stone floors, hear the hum of the bumblebees, and savor the flavor of the fruity Italian wines

Throughout the pages, Maynes invokes a deep sense of appreciation of pure, rustic food. Food picked at the height of freshness, highlighted by fresh herbs make the reader's mouth water. Maynes' demonstrates how local, fresh ingredients from her own and neighboring fields can satisfy many a palate. The book is peppered with simple, yet elegant cuisine for the reader to try. Dishes like white beans with fresh sage and olive oil, crostini with wild porcini are mouthwatering are vividly prepared and sampled by Maynes in the book. She thoughtfully includes many of her favorite Tuscan recipes at several points in the book.

`Under the Tuscan Sun' is a satisfying breath of fresh air and a wonderful change of pace from today's society. Each turn of the page seemly revives the soul and creates a sense of wonder in the reader. Pick up a copy of this book and transport yourself to bella Italy and a land of idyllic enchantment.

The book was recommended by acquaintances who frequently travel to Italy as the best book on Tuscan country living. I wouldn't go nearly that far, although I've read damn few books on Tuscan country living. I have, however, spent 2 holidays in a villa about 15 minutes from Cortona and was delighted to read about places that I knew and about places that I had missed but will certainly look for when I go back this summer.
Her descriptions of Cortona are marvellous though they do not quite reach the level of wonder that I felt the first time I gazed from its old walls into the Valdichiana. It is an absolutely incredible place particularly, as she notes, in the maze of steep streets and alleys above the centro.
Her recipes and philosophical digressions were highly skippable. I was more interested in reading her descriptions of the countryside, the towns, festivals, stores and restaurants. Her detailed descriptions of the search for the house, its purchase and the renovations were very useful for me as I have spent more than one long winter evening seriously contemplating doing exactly those things. I have always eventually dismissed the idea as wildly romantic and just plain impossible but after reading her account, I'm not so sure.
The brief descriptions of the Italians she encountered and her musings about their stories, real or imagined, were enjoyable. We've met some interesting characters in our travels there and I have found myself thinking some of the thoughts that she has written. Italians, though generally friendly and helpful to strangers, are a more private people than North Americans and do not readily volunteer personal information to those they don't know well. I'm sure that one of the delights of her extended residence in Bramasole is the opportunity to get to know the people and to understand a way of life which visitors can all too easily romantisize and distort.
I recommend the book, particularly to those who have visited the area and have been as taken with it as I was.

Frances Mayes has accomplished what she set out to do (I think). She has given us a glimpse of what an adventure in travel, cooking, entertaining, rebuilding and history can be at its best. She is a poet who expresses herself beautifully and I cannot get over the "class envy" evidenced by some of the previous comments. When I told my 83-year old mother about this book she said, "Please send it to me when you are finished...I'll never go to Italy, but I can visualize everything and go there in my mind." Isn't that what it's all about?

I had to come to the store to see what others thought of this book. I borrowed it from my local library; they have little displays and this one said "Love Eat, Pray, Love? Try these," or something similar. I returned it without finishing. Under The Tuscan Sun is a great movie, and one I happen to personally own. Frances Mayes comes across as materialistic, shallow and over-privileged. Someone else wrote "Martha Stewart does Tucany," and that sounds about right. In this case, I highly prefer the movie--it's a story of redemption when Frances serendipitously purchase the villa to overcome the tragedy of her divorce. In the book, Frances jets back and forth with her new husband. In the case of Eat, Pray, Love, Liz Gilbert's having money didn't seem to matter, since the book was focused on spirituality and inner truth. This book was more about renovations. I guess it might be okay if that's what you're looking to read, otherwise it might make you a bit queasy. I did enjoy Frances writing, for a little while, but I waited for substance that never materialized.

Without a doubt, this is my favorite kind of book, but this is a particularly wonderful example of the genre. Frances Mayes just transported me to Italy, to Bramasole, to a land of sun and olives, garlic and pasta, roses and lavender. This is the kind of experience I believe we all long for at one time or another, the in-depth immersion into another culture, happiness untempered by guilt (oh how I love those passages on allowing herself to be happy, and oh how I'll try to learn from them). The bottom line is, Under the Tuscan Sun made me feel very happy and full of possibilities, and I would highly recommend it to anyone

A lackluster and tedious account about purchasing and renovating an old residential structure in Tuscany by a university professor from San Fracisco and her nearly non-existent husband (at least from the book's account). This author is so consumed with self (you'll hear about her job as departmental chair...) that you never get any sense of what life really might be like in this part of Italy. Except for a few interesting food recipes, this book is not a good use of your time. If you want local flavor in sleepy western Europe. Read Peter Mayle.

I didn't think a book about buying a house in a foreign country would be interesting. I was wrong. Through very captivating and descriptive writing skills, the reader is allowed to journey and experience the writer's new adventure in the Tuscan region of Italy. Mayes allows the reader to see more than the tourist sites of Italy. Instead, the reader experiences a more personal view.
It was a fun experience and great trip. What's more, I didn't have to buy a plane ticket or pay for a hotel room. All I extended was the price of the book. Now, that's a great deal!

This book is THE most sensual book I have EVER read. And NOT in the sexual way. Everything about this book is sensual. The descriptions are so vivid. You can see it, you can touch it,you can smell it, you can taste it. It's just so beautifully written that I fell in love with the raw earthiness of this book so completely.
I am disapointed with the reviews that others have given this book, dismissing it as a guide book or trivializing the gorgeousness of it. I understand that people all have different opinions, but I also, at the same time, cannot help but wonder if they have missed the point of the book all together.
It is a book that was written out of love FOR a labor of love...for and about the people and the country that Francis Mayes genuinely keeps deep in her heart. Her love for all of that comes out so completely, so uninhibited that one cannot help but fall hopelessly in love with it all as well.
Now the movie is only a little like the book. And although I very much love the movie, the book is dearer to my heart. Only because the movie screen cannot do justice to the people and the country that Francis Mayes has given it with words.

I picked this up at Christmas last year. It was a good read. Recently I reread it. Rarely do I read a book twice -- usually I remember it too well. In this case, though, I find myself transported back to Tuscany -- the people, the food, the scenery. This one deserves another reading, and I suspect I'll read it again next Christmas! If you're looking for a nonfiction trip back to Italy, this is highly recommended. (By comparison, although I liked A Year in Provence, I prefer Under the Tuscan Sun. Interestingly, I think Mayes' work (UTTS and Bella Tuscany) are derivative of Peter Mayle's (A Year in Provence and Tojour Provence), I think Mayes did a better job of it.

I'm sure this writer is a very nice person, but she should NOT have been the reader on this book. There are some Southern accents that are musical and lovely, but this one is nasal, twangy, and worst of all, just deadly monotonous. No matter how lyrical the words are, the reading is a flat drone that makes it almost impossible to even understand what she's talking about some of the time. All sense of the magic and beauty of the place she's describing is gone. Compared, say, to Peter Mayle's own reading of his book "A Year in Provence," which is utterly delightful, this audio book is shudderingly bad.

This book, its sequels, and the cookbook are all delightful. Frances Mayes successfully depicts the joys and challenges of another lifestyle and culture. I am fascinated that some readers would actually take offense at something that is clearly so enjoyable to the author. If Mayes has money to drop on her adventure, so what? If she enjoys buying lavishly, so what? If she has the means to travel back and forth several times a year, what skin is it off our backs? Rather than lambaste her for doing something life-enriching, why not just enjoy the story for what it is: a great depiction of life in Italy and a means for us to dream. We can learn a lot about people other than ourselves by just chilling out and enjoying the ride.

If you're a person who savors food and words, read this book. Through her words, I lived vicariously in Mayes' Tuscany for several days. I kept saying to myself "I can't believe I got a free trip to Tuscany." Those who don't feel the same way often cite the book as "boring," or "too Martha Stewart." If you enjoy writing that speaks to your senses, then you will not find this book boring. If hearing about those who live the good life doesn't give you an inferiority complex, you'll enjoy this book.

I walked throught the streets of Manhattan reading this novel, unable to put it down. I cannot tell you how many women of all ages (on busses, in the street) smiled knowingly at me when they saw what I was reading. Ms Mayes succeds in capturing the intangible wonders of Italy that are so difficult to put into words. She allows you to be completely envelopped by what she sees, tastes and feels. I also appreciate that she does not patronize the reader by pretending to have become Italian through her residence there. She keeps reminding us she is still a foreigner. I loved the recipes. It reminded me of Like Water for Chocolate. I look forward to more novels very soon.

I don't want to repeat much of what has already been said by previous reviewers, (most of the negative stuff I agree with) so I'll focus on the part of the book I thought was meritorious. I gave this book two stars to credit the author with having provided some terrific recipes as well as describing in an enticing fashion the meals she cooked and ate, and the food of the region. Frankly, I think her writing efforts are misplaced -- she should focus on the food aspects of the region and write a cookbook -- I would buy it! Unfortunately, Ms. Mayes is not an engaging author in her attempts to describe the people, scenery and traditions of Tuscany. I will not make a moral judgment or speculate that the reason she has failed to connect to her surroundings is because she lacks certain personal characteristics. Rather, I prefer to think that she excells at what interests her most, which is cooking and food. So I hope she will concentrate her next book on food and leave the description of the flora, fauna, and folks of Tuscany to other talented authors who find such a topic truly interesting.

I'm half way through this book. I told a friend of mine, who is married to an Italian woman and spends every summer there with his family, that I was reading this book. His comment, "She's a snot". My thought, "Exactly". That this writing has become so popular gives me the chills. Mix thinly minced Scarlett O'Hara with marinated Martha Stewart and saute with a luke warm Danielle Steele novel. This is junior college night class writer's workshop fare. Throw in a lot of foreign words to spice up your writing. Keep a diary of your inner thoughts. Cookbook writing oxymoron. Say arugula. However, the recipes do sound tasty and I think I'll try them. I spent some time in the south and came to recognize the new clothes of racism and the overweening sense of entitlement that still flows in those bloodlines. Instead of pickaninnies we have the more PC Italians, Poles, whatever, whose every gesture amuses Frances with their quaintness. She is actually jealeous of their sense of ample time and lack of hurry. They don't work near as hard as Frances in her busy, professional life back in San Fransisco. And look, a whole valley full of other writers, expats, literati who have all done rennovations. Break out the grappa. I smell a lucrative divorce settlement in the past..."The glass house in California..." Were there a lot of old Good Housekeeping magazines in that house? Do I seem like a frustrated, middle age man who has never pursued his dream and is stuck in a high work volume profession? Maybe. But I still don't like this book. Read Bruce Chatwin instead...real writing...real intelligence...real compassion.

Tuscany is without question one of the most beautiful places on earth. I was hoping to revisit it through this book, was I wrong! The only thing I felt like I visited was Ms Mayes bank account. The itinerary goes something like this:
To do list:
1. Hmm, oh lets go buy ourselves one of those quaint little fixer uppers, we must have an extra million or so lying around. (dollars not lire!)
2. Got to hire some workers to fix up the place, well that's gonna cost me, oh well, those Italians, so amusing.
3. Better run out and buy some pricy Tuscan trinkets to decorate the place. Got some company coming and will they be impressed!
4. My goodness, these nasty vineyards are in bad shape,
Ca-ching!
5. Gosh it sure gets hot here during my 3 month vacations in Tuscany, so much nicer when I come back for a month or so at Christmas.
6. Darn, I must jet back to my mansion in San Franciso, those flights so looong, Why can't the Concorde fly into Firenza!
See the trend here? Ms Mayes comes off as a rich American unconcerned with the beauty and rich individuality of Tuscany, the whole thing reads like one big shopping trip. She has actually produced a book that makes Italy seem dull, something I would have believed impossible. The only reason I am giving it 2 stars is that the recipes are quite good.

The content of this is very good - but don't read it when you are travelling along empty stretches of highways and you are hungry! It's torture! I have read the first in this series -Under the Tuscan Sun and listened to the audio of In Tuscany, read by the author. I think another reviewer commented that F. Mayes obviously does not speak Italian. Well, I'm not sure whether she does or doesn't but I can certify that she has absolutely no Italian accent. Not a shred. I found that the audio was not as appealing as it might have been had it been read by someone else with a better acting voice and a facility for an Italian accent for the Italian phrases.

What led me to buy Undere the Tuscan sun was the book cover, the warmth, the scenery, the light. Inside the book, I found some of this. However, I surprised myself skipping many pages of unnecessary details and stories. I was expecting to learn more about the Italians and their life. There are plenty of good descriptive chapters and interesting personal moments but I was left on my appetite. For those whose first language is not english, it would be advisable to carry an english dictionnary. It could be useful from time to time. An italian dictionnary could be also indicated.

Under the Tuscan Sun is a wonderful and humorous look at what happens when an American couple decides to purchase and convert an ancient pile of stone rooms into a home in the Italian countryside. The book reveals how cultural differences and the elements can conspire to slow the progress of even the most diligent expatriate. Mayes shows us with love and humor what it took for her to finish her project, while she falls deeply in-love with her new land.
The book is a joy to read. I heartily disagree with a previous reviewer who stated "..stick to Peter Mayle." I love Mayle's work, and fell that Mayes does for Tuscany what Mayle did for Provence. If you liked his work, you will undoubtedly enjoy this.

I greatly enjoyed reading about the experiences of an American woman who decided to take a giant leap of faith onto another shore. Her descriptions of the land, food, and personalities of the people she has met in Italy reveal her appreciation for this place, and her willingness to flow with its rhythms. Her ability to share her world without becoming too much the center of it made me want to know even more about her as a person. She never claims to be an expert on Italian life, only familiar with her own life in that place. Her writing style is friendly and easy. I am reading "Bella Tuscany" now, and am enjoying it just as much.

I bought this book because I simply adore the movie. This book is not the movie. The movie took a few lines from it here and there, but it is not the same story. There is no Katherine, no Marcello, no Pawel, no Patti, etc. The entire plot of the movie doesn't exist at all in the book. If you loved the movie and you're wanting to dig deeper into that story by buying the book you'll be disappointed. But if you've never seen the movie, and you just want a snap shot of an American's life in Italy it's not bad.

The author, a professor at San Francisco State University, loves Tuscany, Italy. She often spent summers there. One summer, at the spur of the moment, she decides to buy a second home there. She describes the Tuscan people, land, culture and food like only one would who has an extreme love of the area. Her book was so popular, that Hollywood could not resist in turning it into a major motion picture starring Diane Lane. Frances Mayle's recipes in the book are easy to follow and delicious! Some of the recipes included in this novel are Hazelnut Gelato, Folded Peach Tart with Marscapone, Cherries Steeped in Red Wine and Basil & Lemon Chicken!

In `Under the Tuscan Sun,' Maynes masterfully turns simple words into a beautiful song, magically capturing the essence of Bramasole-and the reader's heart. From the very beginning, readers can feel the pull of Italy and the sense of longing that draws Maynes to the rundown country house. As the house is lovingly and painstakingly restored, we fall in love with Bramasole, Cortona and Tuscany.

The lush rose garden, vibrant landscape, and olive groves all come alive through Maynes' writing. The book is truly a feast for the senses. Readers can feel the hot summer sun, smell the perfume of the abundant lilacs, touch the cool stone floors, hear the hum of the bumblebees, and savor the flavor of the fruity Italian wines

Throughout the pages, Maynes invokes a deep sense of appreciation of pure, rustic food. Food picked at the height of freshness, highlighted by fresh herbs make the reader's mouth water. Maynes' demonstrates how local, fresh ingredients from her own and neighboring fields can satisfy many a palate. The book is peppered with simple, yet elegant cuisine for the reader to try. Dishes like white beans with fresh sage and olive oil, crostini with wild porcini are mouthwatering are vividly prepared and sampled by Maynes in the book. She thoughtfully includes many of her favorite Tuscan recipes at several points in the book.

`Under the Tuscan Sun' is a satisfying breath of fresh air and a wonderful change of pace from today's society. Each turn of the page seemly revives the soul and creates a sense of wonder in the reader. Pick up a copy of this book and transport yourself to bella Italy and a land of idyllic enchantment.

The book was recommended by acquaintances who frequently travel to Italy as the best book on Tuscan country living. I wouldn't go nearly that far, although I've read damn few books on Tuscan country living. I have, however, spent 2 holidays in a villa about 15 minutes from Cortona and was delighted to read about places that I knew and about places that I had missed but will certainly look for when I go back this summer.
Her descriptions of Cortona are marvellous though they do not quite reach the level of wonder that I felt the first time I gazed from its old walls into the Valdichiana. It is an absolutely incredible place particularly, as she notes, in the maze of steep streets and alleys above the centro.
Her recipes and philosophical digressions were highly skippable. I was more interested in reading her descriptions of the countryside, the towns, festivals, stores and restaurants. Her detailed descriptions of the search for the house, its purchase and the renovations were very useful for me as I have spent more than one long winter evening seriously contemplating doing exactly those things. I have always eventually dismissed the idea as wildly romantic and just plain impossible but after reading her account, I'm not so sure.
The brief descriptions of the Italians she encountered and her musings about their stories, real or imagined, were enjoyable. We've met some interesting characters in our travels there and I have found myself thinking some of the thoughts that she has written. Italians, though generally friendly and helpful to strangers, are a more private people than North Americans and do not readily volunteer personal information to those they don't know well. I'm sure that one of the delights of her extended residence in Bramasole is the opportunity to get to know the people and to understand a way of life which visitors can all too easily romantisize and distort.
I recommend the book, particularly to those who have visited the area and have been as taken with it as I was.

Frances Mayes has accomplished what she set out to do (I think). She has given us a glimpse of what an adventure in travel, cooking, entertaining, rebuilding and history can be at its best. She is a poet who expresses herself beautifully and I cannot get over the "class envy" evidenced by some of the previous comments. When I told my 83-year old mother about this book she said, "Please send it to me when you are finished...I'll never go to Italy, but I can visualize everything and go there in my mind." Isn't that what it's all about?

I had to come to the store to see what others thought of this book. I borrowed it from my local library; they have little displays and this one said "Love Eat, Pray, Love? Try these," or something similar. I returned it without finishing. Under The Tuscan Sun is a great movie, and one I happen to personally own. Frances Mayes comes across as materialistic, shallow and over-privileged. Someone else wrote "Martha Stewart does Tucany," and that sounds about right. In this case, I highly prefer the movie--it's a story of redemption when Frances serendipitously purchase the villa to overcome the tragedy of her divorce. In the book, Frances jets back and forth with her new husband. In the case of Eat, Pray, Love, Liz Gilbert's having money didn't seem to matter, since the book was focused on spirituality and inner truth. This book was more about renovations. I guess it might be okay if that's what you're looking to read, otherwise it might make you a bit queasy. I did enjoy Frances writing, for a little while, but I waited for substance that never materialized.

Without a doubt, this is my favorite kind of book, but this is a particularly wonderful example of the genre. Frances Mayes just transported me to Italy, to Bramasole, to a land of sun and olives, garlic and pasta, roses and lavender. This is the kind of experience I believe we all long for at one time or another, the in-depth immersion into another culture, happiness untempered by guilt (oh how I love those passages on allowing herself to be happy, and oh how I'll try to learn from them). The bottom line is, Under the Tuscan Sun made me feel very happy and full of possibilities, and I would highly recommend it to anyone

A lackluster and tedious account about purchasing and renovating an old residential structure in Tuscany by a university professor from San Fracisco and her nearly non-existent husband (at least from the book's account). This author is so consumed with self (you'll hear about her job as departmental chair...) that you never get any sense of what life really might be like in this part of Italy. Except for a few interesting food recipes, this book is not a good use of your time. If you want local flavor in sleepy western Europe. Read Peter Mayle.

I didn't think a book about buying a house in a foreign country would be interesting. I was wrong. Through very captivating and descriptive writing skills, the reader is allowed to journey and experience the writer's new adventure in the Tuscan region of Italy. Mayes allows the reader to see more than the tourist sites of Italy. Instead, the reader experiences a more personal view.
It was a fun experience and great trip. What's more, I didn't have to buy a plane ticket or pay for a hotel room. All I extended was the price of the book. Now, that's a great deal!

This book is THE most sensual book I have EVER read. And NOT in the sexual way. Everything about this book is sensual. The descriptions are so vivid. You can see it, you can touch it,you can smell it, you can taste it. It's just so beautifully written that I fell in love with the raw earthiness of this book so completely.
I am disapointed with the reviews that others have given this book, dismissing it as a guide book or trivializing the gorgeousness of it. I understand that people all have different opinions, but I also, at the same time, cannot help but wonder if they have missed the point of the book all together.
It is a book that was written out of love FOR a labor of love...for and about the people and the country that Francis Mayes genuinely keeps deep in her heart. Her love for all of that comes out so completely, so uninhibited that one cannot help but fall hopelessly in love with it all as well.
Now the movie is only a little like the book. And although I very much love the movie, the book is dearer to my heart. Only because the movie screen cannot do justice to the people and the country that Francis Mayes has given it with words.

I picked this up at Christmas last year. It was a good read. Recently I reread it. Rarely do I read a book twice -- usually I remember it too well. In this case, though, I find myself transported back to Tuscany -- the people, the food, the scenery. This one deserves another reading, and I suspect I'll read it again next Christmas! If you're looking for a nonfiction trip back to Italy, this is highly recommended. (By comparison, although I liked A Year in Provence, I prefer Under the Tuscan Sun. Interestingly, I think Mayes' work (UTTS and Bella Tuscany) are derivative of Peter Mayle's (A Year in Provence and Tojour Provence), I think Mayes did a better job of it.

I'm sure this writer is a very nice person, but she should NOT have been the reader on this book. There are some Southern accents that are musical and lovely, but this one is nasal, twangy, and worst of all, just deadly monotonous. No matter how lyrical the words are, the reading is a flat drone that makes it almost impossible to even understand what she's talking about some of the time. All sense of the magic and beauty of the place she's describing is gone. Compared, say, to Peter Mayle's own reading of his book "A Year in Provence," which is utterly delightful, this audio book is shudderingly bad.

This book, its sequels, and the cookbook are all delightful. Frances Mayes successfully depicts the joys and challenges of another lifestyle and culture. I am fascinated that some readers would actually take offense at something that is clearly so enjoyable to the author. If Mayes has money to drop on her adventure, so what? If she enjoys buying lavishly, so what? If she has the means to travel back and forth several times a year, what skin is it off our backs? Rather than lambaste her for doing something life-enriching, why not just enjoy the story for what it is: a great depiction of life in Italy and a means for us to dream. We can learn a lot about people other than ourselves by just chilling out and enjoying the ride.

If you're a person who savors food and words, read this book. Through her words, I lived vicariously in Mayes' Tuscany for several days. I kept saying to myself "I can't believe I got a free trip to Tuscany." Those who don't feel the same way often cite the book as "boring," or "too Martha Stewart." If you enjoy writing that speaks to your senses, then you will not find this book boring. If hearing about those who live the good life doesn't give you an inferiority complex, you'll enjoy this book.

I walked throught the streets of Manhattan reading this novel, unable to put it down. I cannot tell you how many women of all ages (on busses, in the street) smiled knowingly at me when they saw what I was reading. Ms Mayes succeds in capturing the intangible wonders of Italy that are so difficult to put into words. She allows you to be completely envelopped by what she sees, tastes and feels. I also appreciate that she does not patronize the reader by pretending to have become Italian through her residence there. She keeps reminding us she is still a foreigner. I loved the recipes. It reminded me of Like Water for Chocolate. I look forward to more novels very soon.

I don't want to repeat much of what has already been said by previous reviewers, (most of the negative stuff I agree with) so I'll focus on the part of the book I thought was meritorious. I gave this book two stars to credit the author with having provided some terrific recipes as well as describing in an enticing fashion the meals she cooked and ate, and the food of the region. Frankly, I think her writing efforts are misplaced -- she should focus on the food aspects of the region and write a cookbook -- I would buy it! Unfortunately, Ms. Mayes is not an engaging author in her attempts to describe the people, scenery and traditions of Tuscany. I will not make a moral judgment or speculate that the reason she has failed to connect to her surroundings is because she lacks certain personal characteristics. Rather, I prefer to think that she excells at what interests her most, which is cooking and food. So I hope she will concentrate her next book on food and leave the description of the flora, fauna, and folks of Tuscany to other talented authors who find such a topic truly interesting.

I am so sorry for all those who may have purchased the book expecting to get a story like the movie, which while lovely in a cinematic sense with the also lovely Diane Lane, was really not very interesting.

Ms Mayes' book presents a much better story with much more real character--for instance, I fell for Bramasole & Ed much as the author does. Her trials and tribulations with the renovation (renewal) of the house ring so true to anyone who has ever considered themselves a do-it-your-selfer. Her discoveries in the local area and connection with the people and land are heartwarming. I am cheering right along with her when they are trying to get enough done for the wedding guests who are about to arrive.

Like another reviewer, I have done my web searches, found several lovely country rental homes, and dream of a summer spent in celebration of the reality of being in a place as wonderful and alive as Tuscany...

It is amazingly funny how many people have said this book was more like a travelog than a novel...It IS a travel log...Book very clearly states...Travel/Memoir...not Fiction. I feel sorry for the people who read it expecting to revisit the plot of that ridiculous movie. I read a few reviews which stated...it has no plot or it seems more like a travel log...good thing because it IS..Memoirs dont have a plot. I know this sort of genre is not for everyone and I am sure that Frances Mayes does not need me to take up for her, but somebody complained because it all seemed to orbit around her and the other characters did not exist unless they were interacting with the author...well of course that is the case...if you actually read the book then you know that it was created from her diary that she had written over time of her experiences with the house, Tuscany, etc. It is a memoir which is a diary, a true story not a novel...and I don't know about the rest of you, but my diary is not an accounting of what is happening to other people unless it is a situation which relates to me or what I think about something...that is what a diary is...this is not a novel, so should not be compared to one...Diaries are naturally egocentric, they are about the writer and events seen through the writer's eyes. Travel magazine articles dont focus on what was going on with the couple in the next room, they focus on the author's thoughts and experiences on their journey. One person commented on how weird the recipe chapter was, along with there being no plot...that is because that person clearly thought this was a novel...How..If they actually read it? I know I am being critical, and in turn am leaving myself open to criticism. However, I just do not want people to be turned away by the thought that this is some weird novel written by an egocentric rich person and miss out if they do like travel/memoirs. She is the chair of her dept at her university and converted a lot of lifetime savings into doing this...so of course not everyone can do it..myself included...but if you like travel memoirs, this is a rich accounting of a beautiful if sometimes trying experience in a world outside of what I am used to...the recipes are wonderful and the writing made me see Tuscany without going there. It was like a vacation in a book. I saw some reviewers who had visited Tuscany and said this was like visiting again. Based on what my Father has told me of living in Tuscany, as he did..she doesn't seem that far off the mark. The book and the movie should not be compared they are not on the same subject matter...I personally could not enjoy the movie because I thought it took away so many rich true accountings of what this journey was like and cheapened others...the fact that so much personal drama and things like the Polish worker and a girl; the pregnant lesbian, the sexual aspects were added took away from what I loved in the book...they just did not happen..and it is hard not to be disappointed if you loved the book. Hence, the reason for so many comparisons. If people can enjoy the movie based on its own merits, I am happy for them. The movie is the only bone I have to pick with Frances Mayes. If she allowed those changes I feel that she sold out her true enriching, life-changing experience for money and that is disappointing to myself as a fan of the book which came first and should have been honored.

I have NOT seen the movie, so this review is only based on the book.

This book was highly regarded by a few family members as a beautiful read. Sure, the descriptions are lovely and well written, but the whole idea of a memoir is suppose to be interesting--this is not. I love travel memoirs, reading peoples travel stories, but this was like reading a guide to restore a house--very dry. Ms. Mayes writing reminds me of David Sedaris mocking a wealthly tourist, "My home, well... ONE of my homes".

I have decided to give the book another try. XM Sonic Theater is playing the book and it is being read by the author. However, Ms. Mayes monotone voice and lack of live storytelling makes the story even worse. I understand why authors have voice actors to read the books.

The book is written lovely, but does not exceed the expectation I was excepting.

This book is a magical account through the eyes of one woman. Though i live in the U.S., I know quite a few Italians now living here, and none are like those described in the book. There are many generalizations made about the Italians, however i don't think they are meant as stereotypes. And many of the accounts seem like they're coming from a tourist, which basically is what she is. A 6-month-a-year-tourist. If you want light reading that's dreamy, sultry, and romantic, then this is a great read. If you're looking for a history of the Italian people in a true context, then call your local travel agent, and plan your own trip to Italy. We would all write this book differently, but i can appreciate one persons view point, unlike some of the other reviewers listed below me.

Mayes writes a lovely if not poetic tribute to Tuscany in this, her first published memoir of living in the region. In contrast to Peter Mayle and his work "A Year in Provence," there is less writing on the idiosyncracies of living in the area and more emphasis on pure description of the locale. As an added bonus, she includes some of her favorite seasonal recipes. For those who have seen the movie, there is quite a bit of difference from the book, although, overall, the spirit of the book seems to be preserved.

This poor book. The author tried to write "A Season in Tuscany," but, alas, she is no Peter Mayle. She wanted to write "Villa," but she is no Tracy Kidder. If Mayes wanted to explain how to fix up a villa, she didn't go into enough detail. For example, I'd like to know if she put in surveillance cameras. And one does bristle at the comments about the indigenes. Perhaps we have poorly prioritized our use of time, those of us who read the whole of this dreadful book and then spent more time reviewing it. I don't have time to write more. I have to finish reading the last 20 pages.

As an italian living in Tuscany, I found this book almost outrageous.
First of all, it is a really boring, endless description of THINGS - it could be a do-it-yourself book on restoring houses. From a woman that teaches creative writing, I expected something more. But what really annoyed me is that the author doesn't show the least interest in understanding and penetrating the italian lifestyle and culture. The book could be titled "A Stonehouse Somewhere In The Mediterranean Area", for all the relations it bears with Tuscany, or Italy. The interactions with the locals are limited to whatever work at the house they can do; there isn't the slightest interest in knowing them and their life. Mayes lives in her charming stonehouse immersed in the idea that her way of doing and seeing things is the only possible one; the doubt that "strange" behaviors could be explained by another history and culture never touches her. Being annoyed because people don't come to sand your ceilings in August is like wanting to send your kid to school on Thanksgiving...From what I gathered from the book, Mayes' only real interactions are with other americans, that share with her a quite distorted view of Italy. Her romantic views of the "nonna" living in the nice house in the country really made me laugh; ask any italian grandmother what it was like to live in a farmhouse 50 years ago: 20 hrs of work per day, cold, starving, meat only on Christmas and maybe Easter. And Mayes dreams about the "nonna" lovingly roasting the steaks on the fireplace!
Half of the italian words in the book are mispelled. The book might be intended for an american audience, but still the author could have taken the pain to show it to an italian "friend" before sending it to print. To me, it just shows once more how detached the author is from Tuscany, her "second home".

Having spent time in Tuscany last summer, I found this book just a bit much. Way too much detail about the Italian workmen...those of us who can't afford to hire someone to do EVERYTHING get a little resentful. I love all things Italian, the people, the food, the wine, the fabulous surroundings...just not this book. A better bet is R. Lewis' City of Florence for an interesting look at the history and culture of Florence and Tuscany.

I was really enthralled with this book for the first half. The storyline was interesting, I was drawn in. But about the middle of the book it just changed. She suddenly started long descriptions of buildings and towns, and nothing much was going on anymore. I guess I was disappointed because it felt like the storyline just dropped off. I have tried to continue reading but I'm not sure I will.

Also, this book is nothing like the movie. The only thing in common is the name, and the fact that there was a renovation. Everything is different. That was surprising as well. I did very much enjoy the movie, it's one of my favorites. But if you are looking for the story behind the movie (as I was) you won't find it here.

Well...
Detailed description is nice. And, Tuscany certainly sounds like a beautiful and interesting place. But...are we really interested in a recount of every mundane detail of the author's experience while living in Tuscany? I mean, how about if I wrote a book detailing, with vivid description, every last detail of my life. "I awoke today to azure sky, with a waft of breeze tickling my nose..." and the like. That's what this author does. Hey, good use of descriptive language can give us a sense of the author's experience, and as I said, Tuscany does appear to have charm, but do we really want this sort of thing? I don't get it. Hearing in minute detail the author's experience in re-modeling a house in Tuscany was plenty boring, and I got little insight from it. The occasional Italian recipe mentioned by the author was mildly interesting. But for the rest...I just don't get it. Oh, [I listened to the full audio edition], the experience was not helped by the voice of the reader [not the author] who seemed to warble on throughout the endless detail on every event in the author's life while in Tuscany. Pass on this book, and especially the audio version. Perhaps simply visit Tuscany instead.

One previous reviewer remarked this was "Martha Stewart does Italy" and I couldn't agree more. I came across this book because of an interest in travel literature. In the past year I had read Sea and Sardinia, Douglas' Siren Land and Old Calabria, and recently Norman Lewis's great "Naples 1944". These books describe and ponder real people, real history, and real life. Mayes' book is a fantasy, a Disney like view of Italy and Italians that is both idealizing and condescending. With travel literature one learns at least as much about the author as the land and people he, or she, describes. "Under the Tuscan Sun" is no different and Frances Mayes comes across as a rich, materialistic, arrogant, self absorbed American phoney who is really into buying things, with over the top obsessions regarding food, flowers, and "being happy". What's more she wants you to know how perfect her life is and how perfect everything she does turns out. How wonderful! Where do the Italians and Italy come in? Well, the Italians in her book seem to be remarkably stereotyped. Strangely, she doesn't seem to be all that interested in Italians beyond what they can do for her and providing charming backdrops to her life.
As she teaches creative writing, I suppose one must acknowledge her success at creating a totally fictional world, ala Martha Stewart, but it conveys no insights into Italy or Italians and, frankly, endless recitations of what one has bought on shopping splurges or eaten at meals hardly qualifies as literature of any kind. My guess is that Italians who read this book will be convinced that Americans are complete morons. Thanks, Frances and good luck with your shopping!

A book about the simple life? Maybe, if you have tons of money to carelessly fling about. Simple planks make lovely shelves.....yeah, right. It would probably cost a hundred bucks per plank to get something that doesn't look like a recycled pallet.
I was swept up occasionally by some poetic descriptions, but the effect was lost as she kept going on and on and on and on....
Ms. Mayes seems rather emotionally detached from people. She appreciates them in an aesthetic sense, but I get the feeling that she would ditch her husband if he didn't match the decor.

The first part of the book was more interesting than the last half which I could barely bring myself to finish. I think the author is way out of touch with basic everyday reader and his basic everyday life. Dare I say she is an elitist? While she is a better writer than Peter Mayle (A Year in Provence), his book made me happy and and made me want to experience life more fully. I can't relate to Mayes' experience especially all the phony nonsense about the purchase of the villa that almost wipes them out, yet doesn't seem to stop them from making massive renovations. Most people are just trying to make it to the beach for a week for their vacations and here is Mayes buying a house she will only live in for three months of the year, going back and forth, buying "linens", installing marble countertops, collecting wines, etc.! And the pretentious parties she describes as if we are supposed to think they are quaint. Reading this book reminds me of the Martha Stewart phenomenon. You may admire her skill and organzation but you don't like having your face rubbed in it! Mayes was trying to best Mayle by adding a bit of philosophy about houses, rooms, dreams which sounded ripped off and fell flat with this reader.

This book was so hyped that I hoped it would be good, but the best that I can say is that it is fairly well-written. The writer is terrifically proud of herself. She drops references to her privileged childhood, successful (but part-time) career, and stunning San Francisco home as often as possible. As other reviewers have pointed out, she has an art-colony view of Italy, where she hangs out with other leisured expatriates and micromanages her environment.

Under the Tuscan Sun is a book about following your dreams. Frances Mayes does an incredible job of describing each situation to the fullest; each page throws you into the book with minute details that put you right alongside the main character. At the end, when the main character is encountering all of the old churches, the story-line becomes slightly confusing, but the rest of the book is as clear as her "natural well water".

The book starts with a woman buying a house in Italy. You travel along with her as she deals with renovating an old Tuscan farmhouse, adapting to the natural Italian lifestyle, and repeatedly having to leave her new beloved way of life. Each meal that is cooked, every olive tree that is picked, all of the people she meets, and every path she travels makes you dream of escaping to a foreign country and unearthing your own story of Under the Tuscan Sun. This book can easily be anyone's dream- whether your dream is of discovering life in an old forgotten town or finally realizing where your home is at, anyone who reads this book will realize that dreams are worth discovering.

Our group of 10 found this book to be boring, inconsistent in the writing, and too much like A Year in Provence to be original. Why would this be a bestseller? Nothing ever comes to a conclusion, characters appear and then are never heard from again, the writing seemed to have been fleshed out from magazine articles and tinkered with, when one should have left well enough alone. Not one we would recommend to anyone.

I was very dissapointed in this book. Mayer seemed to be doing a house in Tuscany because it was the "in" thing to do, not because she loved the land and it's people. She never seases trying to impress us (or herself) with her level of sophistcation. For people who are interested in knowing what it would be like to live and upgrade a house in a small town in italy, this is not the book for you. A far superoir book is A Valley in Italy, by Lisa St Aubin DeTeran, who really gives the reader a vicarious experience of living and working with the people in a small town in Italy. It is a delightful book which puts Under the Tuscan Sun to shame.

...Read by the visor light in the car! Very entertaining, as much about the renovation of a life as much of her house in Italy. However I did not enjoy "Bella Tuscany" at all. It's gathering dust. Why? Same author, same country, same writing. But something is off-center.
Barbara Grizzuti Harrison's "Italian Days" is the perfect antidote. Followed by "Eating In Italy." Enjoy.

Never have I read a book that brought forth the assortment of feelings that this one has, beginning with envy as I read the first two chapters. I am not normally an envious person, content as I am with my life. How an American, not even an Italian-American, was able to purchase a house in Italy, an ancient and charming house named "Bramasole" in a beautiful setting, is certainly mind-boggling in itself. However, envy turned to concern and even pity, as the author described what she and her Ed had to go through to make the 30-year-vacant house a home. The first time I read it, was like reading someone's journal which revealed thoughts and feelings as well as the Italian world she had become a part of by being a land owner. Descriptions of her and Ed manually clearing the neglected terraces and walls left me feeling the fatigue and summer heat, then the excitement as they found what the old underbrush covered. I sympathized as they struggled step by step when new challenges appeared. This is conveyed without grumbling. In the fall they return to their home in America and to their jobs. Their love for the house in Italy and the way of life they return to every summer is evident. Now as I read it for the third time, Frances Mayes' poetic descriptions of the land, the people, the food, take on a visual dimension. An added delight are the many wonderful recipes, all with "comfort food" qualities, that are sprinkled throughout the book. I found it an enchanting work of art, an inspiration to, --no, not run off and buy a house in Italy--tempting as that may be, but to travel to Italy and see Italy with new eyes. Thank you, Frances Mayes. Am waiting for you to do a full-color photo book of this little piece of heaven.

A memoir about an American college professor and her lover who purchase a deserted villa in Cortona, Italy, and attempt to restore it to its former glory; thus, enabling them to enjoy "la dolie vita." Along the way they learn to deal with the idiosyncrasies of the local workmen and the slower paced Italian way of life. Much different than the movie, I liked the book more. An added bonus is the recipes she includes.

This is a spectacular work by a spectacular writer who not only understands the key to enjoying all life has to offer, but knows how to express that joy with unequalled passion and applomb. The author and her spouse have purchased a 17th century villa in the heart of elegant Tuscany, an area that has captured their own hearts and imaginations. Over several years of tender and frustrating restoration thay come to know the peoples, culture, foods, and energies of their new adopted home. Time shared between careers in San Francisco and holidays abroad create a deeply enviable lifestyle. But envy is not the correct word - admiration is more accurate, for this author sees the true joy and breadth of her world in all it's myriad aspects and revels in each new discovery. Her journey and storytelling capabilities are beyond exceptional, and this book is a rare peek into the web of honest happiness and contentment. The recipes, landscapes, personalities, friendships, and pure light of this book will bring tears to any reader's eyes, more so to the reader who knows the thrill and beauty of travel. My favorite of the past year without question.

I am so sorry for all those who may have purchased the book expecting to get a story like the movie, which while lovely in a cinematic sense with the also lovely Diane Lane, was really not very interesting.

Ms Mayes' book presents a much better story with much more real character--for instance, I fell for Bramasole & Ed much as the author does. Her trials and tribulations with the renovation (renewal) of the house ring so true to anyone who has ever considered themselves a do-it-your-selfer. Her discoveries in the local area and connection with the people and land are heartwarming. I am cheering right along with her when they are trying to get enough done for the wedding guests who are about to arrive.

Like another reviewer, I have done my web searches, found several lovely country rental homes, and dream of a summer spent in celebration of the reality of being in a place as wonderful and alive as Tuscany...

It is amazingly funny how many people have said this book was more like a travelog than a novel...It IS a travel log...Book very clearly states...Travel/Memoir...not Fiction. I feel sorry for the people who read it expecting to revisit the plot of that ridiculous movie. I read a few reviews which stated...it has no plot or it seems more like a travel log...good thing because it IS..Memoirs dont have a plot. I know this sort of genre is not for everyone and I am sure that Frances Mayes does not need me to take up for her, but somebody complained because it all seemed to orbit around her and the other characters did not exist unless they were interacting with the author...well of course that is the case...if you actually read the book then you know that it was created from her diary that she had written over time of her experiences with the house, Tuscany, etc. It is a memoir which is a diary, a true story not a novel...and I don't know about the rest of you, but my diary is not an accounting of what is happening to other people unless it is a situation which relates to me or what I think about something...that is what a diary is...this is not a novel, so should not be compared to one...Diaries are naturally egocentric, they are about the writer and events seen through the writer's eyes. Travel magazine articles dont focus on what was going on with the couple in the next room, they focus on the author's thoughts and experiences on their journey. One person commented on how weird the recipe chapter was, along with there being no plot...that is because that person clearly thought this was a novel...How..If they actually read it? I know I am being critical, and in turn am leaving myself open to criticism. However, I just do not want people to be turned away by the thought that this is some weird novel written by an egocentric rich person and miss out if they do like travel/memoirs. She is the chair of her dept at her university and converted a lot of lifetime savings into doing this...so of course not everyone can do it..myself included...but if you like travel memoirs, this is a rich accounting of a beautiful if sometimes trying experience in a world outside of what I am used to...the recipes are wonderful and the writing made me see Tuscany without going there. It was like a vacation in a book. I saw some reviewers who had visited Tuscany and said this was like visiting again. Based on what my Father has told me of living in Tuscany, as he did..she doesn't seem that far off the mark. The book and the movie should not be compared they are not on the same subject matter...I personally could not enjoy the movie because I thought it took away so many rich true accountings of what this journey was like and cheapened others...the fact that so much personal drama and things like the Polish worker and a girl; the pregnant lesbian, the sexual aspects were added took away from what I loved in the book...they just did not happen..and it is hard not to be disappointed if you loved the book. Hence, the reason for so many comparisons. If people can enjoy the movie based on its own merits, I am happy for them. The movie is the only bone I have to pick with Frances Mayes. If she allowed those changes I feel that she sold out her true enriching, life-changing experience for money and that is disappointing to myself as a fan of the book which came first and should have been honored.

I have NOT seen the movie, so this review is only based on the book.

This book was highly regarded by a few family members as a beautiful read. Sure, the descriptions are lovely and well written, but the whole idea of a memoir is suppose to be interesting--this is not. I love travel memoirs, reading peoples travel stories, but this was like reading a guide to restore a house--very dry. Ms. Mayes writing reminds me of David Sedaris mocking a wealthly tourist, "My home, well... ONE of my homes".

I have decided to give the book another try. XM Sonic Theater is playing the book and it is being read by the author. However, Ms. Mayes monotone voice and lack of live storytelling makes the story even worse. I understand why authors have voice actors to read the books.

The book is written lovely, but does not exceed the expectation I was excepting.

This book is a magical account through the eyes of one woman. Though i live in the U.S., I know quite a few Italians now living here, and none are like those described in the book. There are many generalizations made about the Italians, however i don't think they are meant as stereotypes. And many of the accounts seem like they're coming from a tourist, which basically is what she is. A 6-month-a-year-tourist. If you want light reading that's dreamy, sultry, and romantic, then this is a great read. If you're looking for a history of the Italian people in a true context, then call your local travel agent, and plan your own trip to Italy. We would all write this book differently, but i can appreciate one persons view point, unlike some of the other reviewers listed below me.

Mayes writes a lovely if not poetic tribute to Tuscany in this, her first published memoir of living in the region. In contrast to Peter Mayle and his work "A Year in Provence," there is less writing on the idiosyncracies of living in the area and more emphasis on pure description of the locale. As an added bonus, she includes some of her favorite seasonal recipes. For those who have seen the movie, there is quite a bit of difference from the book, although, overall, the spirit of the book seems to be preserved.

This poor book. The author tried to write "A Season in Tuscany," but, alas, she is no Peter Mayle. She wanted to write "Villa," but she is no Tracy Kidder. If Mayes wanted to explain how to fix up a villa, she didn't go into enough detail. For example, I'd like to know if she put in surveillance cameras. And one does bristle at the comments about the indigenes. Perhaps we have poorly prioritized our use of time, those of us who read the whole of this dreadful book and then spent more time reviewing it. I don't have time to write more. I have to finish reading the last 20 pages.

As an italian living in Tuscany, I found this book almost outrageous.
First of all, it is a really boring, endless description of THINGS - it could be a do-it-yourself book on restoring houses. From a woman that teaches creative writing, I expected something more. But what really annoyed me is that the author doesn't show the least interest in understanding and penetrating the italian lifestyle and culture. The book could be titled "A Stonehouse Somewhere In The Mediterranean Area", for all the relations it bears with Tuscany, or Italy. The interactions with the locals are limited to whatever work at the house they can do; there isn't the slightest interest in knowing them and their life. Mayes lives in her charming stonehouse immersed in the idea that her way of doing and seeing things is the only possible one; the doubt that "strange" behaviors could be explained by another history and culture never touches her. Being annoyed because people don't come to sand your ceilings in August is like wanting to send your kid to school on Thanksgiving...From what I gathered from the book, Mayes' only real interactions are with other americans, that share with her a quite distorted view of Italy. Her romantic views of the "nonna" living in the nice house in the country really made me laugh; ask any italian grandmother what it was like to live in a farmhouse 50 years ago: 20 hrs of work per day, cold, starving, meat only on Christmas and maybe Easter. And Mayes dreams about the "nonna" lovingly roasting the steaks on the fireplace!
Half of the italian words in the book are mispelled. The book might be intended for an american audience, but still the author could have taken the pain to show it to an italian "friend" before sending it to print. To me, it just shows once more how detached the author is from Tuscany, her "second home".

Having spent time in Tuscany last summer, I found this book just a bit much. Way too much detail about the Italian workmen...those of us who can't afford to hire someone to do EVERYTHING get a little resentful. I love all things Italian, the people, the food, the wine, the fabulous surroundings...just not this book. A better bet is R. Lewis' City of Florence for an interesting look at the history and culture of Florence and Tuscany.

I was really enthralled with this book for the first half. The storyline was interesting, I was drawn in. But about the middle of the book it just changed. She suddenly started long descriptions of buildings and towns, and nothing much was going on anymore. I guess I was disappointed because it felt like the storyline just dropped off. I have tried to continue reading but I'm not sure I will.

Also, this book is nothing like the movie. The only thing in common is the name, and the fact that there was a renovation. Everything is different. That was surprising as well. I did very much enjoy the movie, it's one of my favorites. But if you are looking for the story behind the movie (as I was) you won't find it here.

Well...
Detailed description is nice. And, Tuscany certainly sounds like a beautiful and interesting place. But...are we really interested in a recount of every mundane detail of the author's experience while living in Tuscany? I mean, how about if I wrote a book detailing, with vivid description, every last detail of my life. "I awoke today to azure sky, with a waft of breeze tickling my nose..." and the like. That's what this author does. Hey, good use of descriptive language can give us a sense of the author's experience, and as I said, Tuscany does appear to have charm, but do we really want this sort of thing? I don't get it. Hearing in minute detail the author's experience in re-modeling a house in Tuscany was plenty boring, and I got little insight from it. The occasional Italian recipe mentioned by the author was mildly interesting. But for the rest...I just don't get it. Oh, [I listened to the full audio edition], the experience was not helped by the voice of the reader [not the author] who seemed to warble on throughout the endless detail on every event in the author's life while in Tuscany. Pass on this book, and especially the audio version. Perhaps simply visit Tuscany instead.

One previous reviewer remarked this was "Martha Stewart does Italy" and I couldn't agree more. I came across this book because of an interest in travel literature. In the past year I had read Sea and Sardinia, Douglas' Siren Land and Old Calabria, and recently Norman Lewis's great "Naples 1944". These books describe and ponder real people, real history, and real life. Mayes' book is a fantasy, a Disney like view of Italy and Italians that is both idealizing and condescending. With travel literature one learns at least as much about the author as the land and people he, or she, describes. "Under the Tuscan Sun" is no different and Frances Mayes comes across as a rich, materialistic, arrogant, self absorbed American phoney who is really into buying things, with over the top obsessions regarding food, flowers, and "being happy". What's more she wants you to know how perfect her life is and how perfect everything she does turns out. How wonderful! Where do the Italians and Italy come in? Well, the Italians in her book seem to be remarkably stereotyped. Strangely, she doesn't seem to be all that interested in Italians beyond what they can do for her and providing charming backdrops to her life.
As she teaches creative writing, I suppose one must acknowledge her success at creating a totally fictional world, ala Martha Stewart, but it conveys no insights into Italy or Italians and, frankly, endless recitations of what one has bought on shopping splurges or eaten at meals hardly qualifies as literature of any kind. My guess is that Italians who read this book will be convinced that Americans are complete morons. Thanks, Frances and good luck with your shopping!

A book about the simple life? Maybe, if you have tons of money to carelessly fling about. Simple planks make lovely shelves.....yeah, right. It would probably cost a hundred bucks per plank to get something that doesn't look like a recycled pallet.
I was swept up occasionally by some poetic descriptions, but the effect was lost as she kept going on and on and on and on....
Ms. Mayes seems rather emotionally detached from people. She appreciates them in an aesthetic sense, but I get the feeling that she would ditch her husband if he didn't match the decor.

The first part of the book was more interesting than the last half which I could barely bring myself to finish. I think the author is way out of touch with basic everyday reader and his basic everyday life. Dare I say she is an elitist? While she is a better writer than Peter Mayle (A Year in Provence), his book made me happy and and made me want to experience life more fully. I can't relate to Mayes' experience especially all the phony nonsense about the purchase of the villa that almost wipes them out, yet doesn't seem to stop them from making massive renovations. Most people are just trying to make it to the beach for a week for their vacations and here is Mayes buying a house she will only live in for three months of the year, going back and forth, buying "linens", installing marble countertops, collecting wines, etc.! And the pretentious parties she describes as if we are supposed to think they are quaint. Reading this book reminds me of the Martha Stewart phenomenon. You may admire her skill and organzation but you don't like having your face rubbed in it! Mayes was trying to best Mayle by adding a bit of philosophy about houses, rooms, dreams which sounded ripped off and fell flat with this reader.

This book was so hyped that I hoped it would be good, but the best that I can say is that it is fairly well-written. The writer is terrifically proud of herself. She drops references to her privileged childhood, successful (but part-time) career, and stunning San Francisco home as often as possible. As other reviewers have pointed out, she has an art-colony view of Italy, where she hangs out with other leisured expatriates and micromanages her environment.

Under the Tuscan Sun is a book about following your dreams. Frances Mayes does an incredible job of describing each situation to the fullest; each page throws you into the book with minute details that put you right alongside the main character. At the end, when the main character is encountering all of the old churches, the story-line becomes slightly confusing, but the rest of the book is as clear as her "natural well water".

The book starts with a woman buying a house in Italy. You travel along with her as she deals with renovating an old Tuscan farmhouse, adapting to the natural Italian lifestyle, and repeatedly having to leave her new beloved way of life. Each meal that is cooked, every olive tree that is picked, all of the people she meets, and every path she travels makes you dream of escaping to a foreign country and unearthing your own story of Under the Tuscan Sun. This book can easily be anyone's dream- whether your dream is of discovering life in an old forgotten town or finally realizing where your home is at, anyone who reads this book will realize that dreams are worth discovering.

Our group of 10 found this book to be boring, inconsistent in the writing, and too much like A Year in Provence to be original. Why would this be a bestseller? Nothing ever comes to a conclusion, characters appear and then are never heard from again, the writing seemed to have been fleshed out from magazine articles and tinkered with, when one should have left well enough alone. Not one we would recommend to anyone.

I was very dissapointed in this book. Mayer seemed to be doing a house in Tuscany because it was the "in" thing to do, not because she loved the land and it's people. She never seases trying to impress us (or herself) with her level of sophistcation. For people who are interested in knowing what it would be like to live and upgrade a house in a small town in italy, this is not the book for you. A far superoir book is A Valley in Italy, by Lisa St Aubin DeTeran, who really gives the reader a vicarious experience of living and working with the people in a small town in Italy. It is a delightful book which puts Under the Tuscan Sun to shame.

...Read by the visor light in the car! Very entertaining, as much about the renovation of a life as much of her house in Italy. However I did not enjoy "Bella Tuscany" at all. It's gathering dust. Why? Same author, same country, same writing. But something is off-center.
Barbara Grizzuti Harrison's "Italian Days" is the perfect antidote. Followed by "Eating In Italy." Enjoy.

I was taken before I got to the fifth page. I want to go there, live there, EAT there! I want a gravel piazza with a long weathered table. Can't wait to read the rest. This book was so much fetter than the movie, which I loved!

Three points about this equisite book: 1) This book should be read with the UTTS calendar nearby. Its photographs perfectly complement Ms. Mayes' evocative prose. 2) Reading UTTS was like taking a quick journey to a serene, sunlit land. Potential readers should probably decide whether they are idea-people or people-people, for ideas are the heart of this lovely memoir. People-oriented people may not be satisfied with the simplicity of Ms. Mayes' creative experience. 3) It's a keeper- I wish I had bought the hardcover edition. The paperback feels flimsy and cheap, but I will be reading it over and over.

I enjoyed this book for its simplicity yet Mayes seemed quite naive to the complexities of life in Italy and to the Italian people. A much deeper, more accurate account of the Italians and what its really like to be there, I would highly recommend As the Romans Do: The Delights, Dramas and Daily Diversions of Life in the Eternal City written by Alan Epstein, who is a full time resident of Rome with his wife and two sons.
I couldn't say it better than the Philadelphia Inquirer who wrote about As the Romans Do in this Sunday's (April 23) Travel Section: "Whether discoursing on the excellent cuisine or the historical foundations of the predominant habits and niceties of civil intercourse, Epstein captures the heady atmosphere of Rome so completely as to make this book essential for anyone who would understand [Italy] before heading there."

UNDER THE TUSCAN SUN is such an enjoyable read, with a terrific sense of place. Her descriptions of Cortona, one of the loveliest towns in all Italy, and its surroundings, rang completely true. The pleasures and pains of returning her "fixer-upper" of a house into a beautiful home were lovingly, and honestly portrayed, without honey-coating the back-breaking labors she and others experienced. She made us feel her pains and frustrations as well as her joys, both large and small. Her dealings with the local workers and townfolk were sensitive, yet forthright. Only one thing was wrong with the book - where were the photographs of the house, before and after? She led us every step of the way in the renovation. Ms. Mayes could see the results. We couldn't! Terribly frustrating for all of us.

This is a pretty good book...It's not perfect but Frances Mayes does a great job letting us(the reader) see what she sees and tastes what she tastes. I found the recipes a bit much..I am not one to read recipes unless I am acually going to make something..Overall great book...a great book for a long train ride.

I had high hopes for this book, but was terribly disappointed. For all the nuance of Italian life this volume conveyed, it could have been a book about home repair in Terre Haute, Indiana. The author comes across as an upper class Southern belle twit who is inexplicably employed as a creative writing instructor at San Francisco State, a gritty blue-collar campus. She's so involved with her job and students there that they merit no mention at all, except perhaps as impediments to her yuppie quest in Tuscany.
This book is a triumph of marketing over substance. I was hoping to learn something about Tuscany or Italian mores, but all I got was the author's self-indulgent small talk. She did, however, answer one question for me: Who can possibly afford to shop in Florence?

This memoir reflects upon a wondrous journey to a fertile and passionate place, a place which oozes life well-lived, Tuscany. Unfortunately, the journey was taken and commented upon by the puddle-deep Ms. Mayes, a pompous, self-absorbed West Coast pseudo-intellectual who is quite impressed with herself, thank you very much. Her mindless quasi-philosophical musings irritate more than enlighten. Her distant, almost clinical analysis of the lovable and idiosyncratic people around her in Italy infuriates, and confirms, again, that she is missing the point by a mile. This is a woman who doesn't know where she is from: Georgia, Italy or San Fran. As she writes, she tries to find balance between the three and sell its reasonableness. She fails. Her truth is not to be found in Italy. That said, the recipes are good.

Okay, maybe there a little bit of a plot but not the grand romantic one found in the movie. Mostly it is a travelogue about the culture of Tuscany as she puts this old house together with her friend. None of the fun side characters are to be found in this story. Was looking forward to something quite different. If you love the movie, don't think that this is the same story. Hollywood really took alot of liberties this time.

Being 1/2 Italian, and having family in Northern Italy, and having visited Italy 6 times I have to say... buy this book ONLY if:
1) You've never been to Italy, and
2) You love to cook (and read recipes), and
3) You want to read what it's like to be able to afford a home in SF and renovate one in Tuscany, and
4) You want to cling to a fairy-tale vision of Italy, or
5) You're on a deserted island with nothing else to read.
However, if you really want to know what it's like to live/be in Italy, and what Italian culture is really like, I suggest you read any or all of Tim Parks' books ("Italian Neighbors Or, a Lapsed Anglo-Saxon in Verona", "Italian Education", or "A Season with Verona: Travels Around Italy in Search of Illusion, National Character, and...Goals!"). Tim is an Englishman who married an Italian woman and moved to Italy and had kids. Parks' descriptions of Italian life are real... Mayes' descriptions of Italian life are a bit too syrupy for my stomach.

This book is extremely boring. I understand that this is a memoir, and I did not expect crazy fictional characters to pop out. However, absolutely nothing pops out. Mayes talks about her life in Italy, but there's no deep meaning to living in Italy. She isn't advocating change in American societies. She isn't persuading people to take on a better life. All she is doing is describing her surroundings and what she does day to day. Her descriptions are drawn out with no end. She describes every single little thing that she sees, hears, and smells without a purpose or a reason.

How I wish I could be a best-selling author just by describing the pimples on the faces I see as I walk down the littered path, winding around the dark gray somber buildings of the city in which I reside, so desperately and with such agony.

Her flowery language leaves my innards pushing through my parched throat as I try not to fling the book out of my hand in the swift motion that it, the book, so deserves. And I only stop myself from doing so because I do not want to hit the passer-by who stares at me with inquisitive eyes, beseaching me to tell him why I'm seething with boredom.

(Honestly, that's how her book sounds to me. If you like super fake flowery language, go right ahead. I'd rather get my perfumed flowery description fix from the classics like Thomas Hardy, DH Lawrence, or even Salman Rushdie...)

The book may actually have its merits but you will never get to appreciate it if you attempt to listen to her boring monotone delivery on the CD. I couldn't get through the second CD without screaming for relief. Seems almost like a parody of books on tape(CD) as no one could possibly do a better job of suppressing your imagination.

I read this book since I studied in the town the story is based in. She is a very vivid and brilliant writer, I would say quite the imagination though. It's way overly romanticized. She mostly writes about fixing up the house she bought in Italy. What really makes it any different from buying a house in the US? Her romantic notions of Italy did bring me back to the simplicity of life in Italy, but overall, it just feels self indulgent on the author's part.

I read this book on my annual trip to Tuscany, and while the author captured the beauty and magic of this part of the world, it also left a bad taste in my mouth. There was a touch of pretention and superiority to her voice..she seemed busy tasting wines and making phoney comments about their quality while the East European laborers did the bulk of the renovation. I do not doubt her love and passion for Tuscany but I also felt she implied that anyone can take a plunge this drastic if they have the same drive as her, and that simply is not the case - buying a villa in Tuscany is not necessarily a tangible option for the majority of us, regardless of how much we love the idea.

I listened to the audio book read by Barbara Caruso (who has a marvellous reading voice). I thoroughly enjoyed the excellent quality of the writing which beautifully brought to life one woman's experience in a foreign country with different lifestyle and customs. I don't think it pretends to portray every aspect of Tuscan life, but rather just her experiences and joys of the place and the people. By chance, on British television there is currently running a series about the 'real Tuscany' (warts and all). But that is not I wanted to read about in a book of this nature - I wanted a well-written bit of escapism, and that's what I got - an excellent read (some of the reviews seem, dare I say, I little jealous of Frances Mayes lifestyle - I say good luck to her and congratulations on a excellent piece of entertaining writing).

I picked this book up in a country bookshop in Suffolk, England and I could not put it down. The author takes you every step of her journey in buying and renovating this neglected but grand Italian villa , exploring her love of Italy and, importantly for me, her passion for cooking and wonderful ingredients. She paints detailed portraits of the local workmen and, as she makes her regular visits to Cortona down the Roman road, you travelled with her. She describes the heat and hard work in unravelling her terraced garden, the olive trees, their first harvest and the fascination with discovering wells and creating new ones. It was an innovative idea to include recipes within the text and I will be cooking my way through these. Finally I do hope she is considering a further book on her Italian home.

I began reading this book, about a month before I left to study abroad in Cortona. I had heard that it would give me an idea of the place. At first, it seemed to be another collection of thoughts in a journal not unlike my own. Then I decided to wait to arrive before reading it. Once there, I read and used it like a guide all over town, finding those perfect little stores, and seeing those strange little cortenese people. And by description alone, I found my way to her house, and it is as beautiful as the imagery she uses to describe it. Cortona is a beautiful and fragrant little culture trapped in time. Mayes brought that into the spotlight... and now, remembering my studies there, I have read it again, and each time, I smile remembering those beautiful places, swearing that I will get back there. I will. I'm sure my copies of her "guides" will be packed in my bags.

It was one of those books you want to get back to, preferably with a comfortable chair and long, cool drink. She is fantastic at making you 'the person over her shoulder', tho I also noticed that the italian neighbours were described in more detail than poor Ed. The book sort of tailed off, and I would have appreciated a more rounded up version. Otherwise enchanting and put the creativity back in my kitchen.

I started reading the book thinking it would be like the movie, but I quickly realized that snippets of the book make the awesome movie. So I took that with a grain of salt until about 3/4 through it when I started feeling almost jealous of her extravagant life. It's like she HAS to eat ONLY gourmet every night. Isn't she American? Doesn't she crave American-type food sometimes? Just because she is in Italy doesn't mean she can't crave a hamburger or whatever. She obviously came from money because she had a big fancy southern plantation house complete with a cook. Her daughter seems to be spoiled just like her. Must be nice! People say the book is choppy and full of her own views of Italy. I think they forgot to read the part where it said that the book was a remake of her little journal, so naturally it would lack a plot and be tidbits of info about her thoughts and views of her life. She omitted the parts about SF because that doesn't have anything to do with Tuscany. Overall, it was fun at first, then tedious, then just hard to read because of all her required lavishness. I am just a regular middle class American. I've never even been to Europe because I can't afford it! This book ended up making me feel like a loser or something because there's no way that I could EVER afford do what she did. And to top it off, she made millions off the three books she has written about Tuscany! It's feeding that fire.

I enjoyed this book very much as I am an Italian and thrive upon reading stories from my great-grandparent's country. The author portrays her experiences very honestly which is refreshing since many books are claiming to be fantasies of Martha Stewart. I now long to visit Tuscany and leisurely enjoy the food and atmosphere.

The book is plain dull and annoying.

Mayes desperately tries to make herself sound educated and cultured by quoting Horace and Plato in situations that don't really seem to warrant such a quote. Her descriptions of the luscious Italian countryside are dry and unimaginative, and what she talks about is simply uninteresting.

Italy is an amazing country, but this book doesn't do it justice at all.

If you have seen the movie, and loved it (as I did), then you absolutely MUST read the book. Is the book like the movie? Does the book 'parrot' the movie? ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! First the movie was made from snipites of the book. When you have read the first paragraph you will realize that the movie will not do the book justice.

This book has MORE warmth, smiles and appeal than even the movie could inclued. Is it worth it to read the book? ABSOLUTELY!!!!!! Go for it and you will be rewarded far beyond your DVD dreams.

Only the cynical would not enjoy this charming book. I loved it! I've never read a book that made me feel so strongly about enjoying and appreciating my life and having the courage to go after happiness. It's vivid discriptions awaken the senses. I love Frances Mayes style of writing, fluid, colorful and inspiring.

I just have to echo the reviews of Mike from Abingdon and Cary from San Francisco. I lived in Florence for several months and was given this book as a gift. I found this work rather self-congratulatory and superficial, and her attitudes toward the Italians and their culture at times condescending. It is a book about spending money, lots of it, with little literary value.

Transport yourself to Tuscany and the renovation of an antique farmhouse in this luxurious memoir. The writing is lyrical, the descriptions lush and the depictions of Italian vistas, people and cuisine a delight. The inclusion of regional recipes themed to the seasons is a happy bonus. The accolades for this book are well-deserved. Especially recommended for a lift in late fall and winter, when you're dreaming of warmth.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, but the audio version is almost more than anyone can bear. It is read by Frances Mayes (the author), but she reads it with no expression, as if she is hearing about this for the first time. Her heavy southern accent, while authentic, makes it hard to understand. This fascinating narrative would be so much better read by a professional actor.

I had the incomparable pleasure of reading most of this book while vacationing in Tuscany, in a little town called Loro Ciuffena, in a house very similar to the house Bramasole was becoming as this wonderfully written journal unfolded. I felt so fortunate to be reading about a stone sink and have one not ten feet away from my chair. What I found most amazing was that common everyday things that Ms. Mayes felt so drawn to describe in loving detail were the things my eyes were drawn to as well. Ms. Mayes stirred feelings of challenge, adventure and desire to do exactly what everyone advises you not to do within me that I never really knew I had. I highly reccommend this book to anyone travelling to this part of Italy !

I am glad I didn't spend money on this book, it was loaned to me. The first third was of interest - how to negotiate buying a house in Italy vs my own country of France. It then became the story of a wealthy American couple pretending to have spent their last penny buying this farm but still managing to go there from California three times a year, spending what must have been a fortune installing a central heating system. What happened to the fireplace? They pretend to live like the locals and certainly don't blend in. We learn that the author owns a Sub-Zero refrigerator in San Francisco, how relevant is this to the story? we also learn that Ms. Mayes's mother had a cook. In brief, I found this pretentious and not worth the paper it is written on, made a great tax write-off though for the Mayes....

How is it that this even got published? I am a voracious reader, even books I don't really care for I finish just because I want to see what happens in the end. But I just couldn't do it with this one. How can you be so possibly boring?? Have you ever been stuck on the phone with someone who just loves to talk about themselves? You listen, occasionally give a few grunts as acknowledgement, and sigh in relief when they finally run out of words and use for your ear. This book was that, in text form. Frances Mayers needs someone to talk to, I guess no one would listen, so she wrote it all down in book format. If this is all it takes to publish a book, maybe I'll become a writer!

It is so easy to be envious of a lifestyle that jets between the dreamy Tuscan village and the dreary life of academia in a busy, unexcitable American city. Most of all the envy comes when it the reader's stomach is empty and the delicious food is rolled out before your very eyes. To be read only after eating.

A tour de force from Frances Mayes. Mayes is to Italy what Mayle is to Provence. Frances captures the essence of Tuscany perfectly: the wine, the olive groves, the music, the food. This could well be the best advertisement for Italy ever written. Highly recommended for anyone who loves Italy or is planning a trip there.

I enjoyed parts of this and "Bella Tuscany" on a superficial, escapist level. I like sunshine, travel, Italy, good food, shopping and nice houses so these can be a pleasant escape from grey, rainy Scottish winters (and summers!) However, I have to agree with many of the negative comments made about the way the books are written and the way the author comes across. At times they can be deadly dull, unbelievably pretentious, as well as patronising and humourless. If you want to read about house renovating in Italy try "A Valley In Italy" by the fascinating Lisa St Aubin De Teran instead. Also, as many reader have previously mentioned, Peter Mayle and Tim Parks are much better on adjusting to life in a foreign country.

Frances Mayes' breakthrough book is an elegant, poetic stroll through her personnel odyssey and her adopted Italian home. She struck a nerve with her courage and initiative, triumphing over personal crisis and striking out in a bold, new direction in her life. A creative writer and a master storyteller, her story flows.

Mayes' writing is not witty, and it is not exciting. It flows gently and peacefully through the Italian countryside. Therefore, some readers find it boring. However, it is beautiful writing laced with honest, personal revelations and fine receipes.

I found this book to be wonderful, at first I was put off by Mayes' constant rambling about every topic, but then as I got further into the book I realized that I was learning a great deal about the culture of Italy that I probably wouldn't get to learn in my Italian class. I plan on studying in Italy in a few years and this is a great way to get to know the country!

This book was a total bore, and a struggle to complete. I found the details of the renovation project to be tedious. I'd rather take a quick tour around Home Depot. I also didn't care for the author's condescending attitude to the locals, workers, etc. I've been to Italy a few times and found this unrealistic and disappointing.

Under A Tuscan Sun is one of those books that I finished just because I started it. The story idea sounds idyllic: Restore a damaged psyche by restoring an Italian villa. The problem is that the book indulges the author's egocentricity and does little else. She mentions her friend/partner/husband. We don't know the relationship because she does not bother to tell us. And she does not have him speak until 200 pages into the book. Instead, we only know him as the man who lives with her in Italy and who carries shoes.
The restoration project also reads like a joke. Mayes nearly destroys the villa by cutting a door through a loadbearing stone wall, against all advice, and then is proud that she has done so. And she blithly responds to a question about the down side of restoring an old building in another country that "There is no down side."
If you are feeling hurt and want to commmiserate with another injured soul, albeit one who clearly wallows in her pain and rejects simple virtues such as common sense, read the book. If not, you will probably wish you had read something with more depth, substance and pragmatism. Dave Barry would qualify.

A friend of Italian origin lent me "Under the Tuscan Sun" and was in raptures about the book. Sadly I found it tedious and contrived. In describing Italy one would assume there to be energy and colour. Ms Mayes' writing is the antithesis of the culture she seeks to be embraced into.

I've been fascinated with Italy ever since a brief visit there three years ago. This book brings alive the culture and rhythm of Tuscan living. As the author describes the renovation of the house and grounds and settling into Italian life, you wonder to yourself why life can't be more like that everywhere. This book made me want to go buy a house in Italy too!

Having seen and enjoyed the movie years ago, I was intrigued to get the whole story. Books usually tell it so much better. This one doesn't. So, if you're looking to read a better version of the movie, this isn't it - go buy the script.

There's no drama, no character development, no humor, no love story! It's just imagery, imagery, imagery. BORING. It was good for putting me to sleep, but that's about it. Here's the cliffsnotes version of the book: Two professors go to Italy, buy a house, fix it up, visit it every summer and Christmas and serve lots of dinners to lots of other people, all who have no story to tell either. You also get a lot of descriptions of doorways and vegetables. There, you've read it!

Whoever wrote the script for the movie was a genius to find a way to make something interesting out of this SNOOZEFEST! Save your money, go rent the movie.

I enjoyed this book very much as I am an Italian and thrive upon reading stories from my great-grandparent's country. The author portrays her experiences very honestly which is refreshing since many books are claiming to be fantasies of Martha Stewart. I now long to visit Tuscany and leisurely enjoy the food and atmosphere.

The book is plain dull and annoying.

Mayes desperately tries to make herself sound educated and cultured by quoting Horace and Plato in situations that don't really seem to warrant such a quote. Her descriptions of the luscious Italian countryside are dry and unimaginative, and what she talks about is simply uninteresting.

Italy is an amazing country, but this book doesn't do it justice at all.

If you have seen the movie, and loved it (as I did), then you absolutely MUST read the book. Is the book like the movie? Does the book 'parrot' the movie? ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! First the movie was made from snipites of the book. When you have read the first paragraph you will realize that the movie will not do the book justice.

This book has MORE warmth, smiles and appeal than even the movie could inclued. Is it worth it to read the book? ABSOLUTELY!!!!!! Go for it and you will be rewarded far beyond your DVD dreams.

Only the cynical would not enjoy this charming book. I loved it! I've never read a book that made me feel so strongly about enjoying and appreciating my life and having the courage to go after happiness. It's vivid discriptions awaken the senses. I love Frances Mayes style of writing, fluid, colorful and inspiring.

I just have to echo the reviews of Mike from Abingdon and Cary from San Francisco. I lived in Florence for several months and was given this book as a gift. I found this work rather self-congratulatory and superficial, and her attitudes toward the Italians and their culture at times condescending. It is a book about spending money, lots of it, with little literary value.

Transport yourself to Tuscany and the renovation of an antique farmhouse in this luxurious memoir. The writing is lyrical, the descriptions lush and the depictions of Italian vistas, people and cuisine a delight. The inclusion of regional recipes themed to the seasons is a happy bonus. The accolades for this book are well-deserved. Especially recommended for a lift in late fall and winter, when you're dreaming of warmth.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, but the audio version is almost more than anyone can bear. It is read by Frances Mayes (the author), but she reads it with no expression, as if she is hearing about this for the first time. Her heavy southern accent, while authentic, makes it hard to understand. This fascinating narrative would be so much better read by a professional actor.

I had the incomparable pleasure of reading most of this book while vacationing in Tuscany, in a little town called Loro Ciuffena, in a house very similar to the house Bramasole was becoming as this wonderfully written journal unfolded. I felt so fortunate to be reading about a stone sink and have one not ten feet away from my chair. What I found most amazing was that common everyday things that Ms. Mayes felt so drawn to describe in loving detail were the things my eyes were drawn to as well. Ms. Mayes stirred feelings of challenge, adventure and desire to do exactly what everyone advises you not to do within me that I never really knew I had. I highly reccommend this book to anyone travelling to this part of Italy !

I am glad I didn't spend money on this book, it was loaned to me. The first third was of interest - how to negotiate buying a house in Italy vs my own country of France. It then became the story of a wealthy American couple pretending to have spent their last penny buying this farm but still managing to go there from California three times a year, spending what must have been a fortune installing a central heating system. What happened to the fireplace? They pretend to live like the locals and certainly don't blend in. We learn that the author owns a Sub-Zero refrigerator in San Francisco, how relevant is this to the story? we also learn that Ms. Mayes's mother had a cook. In brief, I found this pretentious and not worth the paper it is written on, made a great tax write-off though for the Mayes....

How is it that this even got published? I am a voracious reader, even books I don't really care for I finish just because I want to see what happens in the end. But I just couldn't do it with this one. How can you be so possibly boring?? Have you ever been stuck on the phone with someone who just loves to talk about themselves? You listen, occasionally give a few grunts as acknowledgement, and sigh in relief when they finally run out of words and use for your ear. This book was that, in text form. Frances Mayers needs someone to talk to, I guess no one would listen, so she wrote it all down in book format. If this is all it takes to publish a book, maybe I'll become a writer!

It is so easy to be envious of a lifestyle that jets between the dreamy Tuscan village and the dreary life of academia in a busy, unexcitable American city. Most of all the envy comes when it the reader's stomach is empty and the delicious food is rolled out before your very eyes. To be read only after eating.

A tour de force from Frances Mayes. Mayes is to Italy what Mayle is to Provence. Frances captures the essence of Tuscany perfectly: the wine, the olive groves, the music, the food. This could well be the best advertisement for Italy ever written. Highly recommended for anyone who loves Italy or is planning a trip there.

I enjoyed parts of this and "Bella Tuscany" on a superficial, escapist level. I like sunshine, travel, Italy, good food, shopping and nice houses so these can be a pleasant escape from grey, rainy Scottish winters (and summers!) However, I have to agree with many of the negative comments made about the way the books are written and the way the author comes across. At times they can be deadly dull, unbelievably pretentious, as well as patronising and humourless. If you want to read about house renovating in Italy try "A Valley In Italy" by the fascinating Lisa St Aubin De Teran instead. Also, as many reader have previously mentioned, Peter Mayle and Tim Parks are much better on adjusting to life in a foreign country.

Frances Mayes' breakthrough book is an elegant, poetic stroll through her personnel odyssey and her adopted Italian home. She struck a nerve with her courage and initiative, triumphing over personal crisis and striking out in a bold, new direction in her life. A creative writer and a master storyteller, her story flows.

Mayes' writing is not witty, and it is not exciting. It flows gently and peacefully through the Italian countryside. Therefore, some readers find it boring. However, it is beautiful writing laced with honest, personal revelations and fine receipes.

I found this book to be wonderful, at first I was put off by Mayes' constant rambling about every topic, but then as I got further into the book I realized that I was learning a great deal about the culture of Italy that I probably wouldn't get to learn in my Italian class. I plan on studying in Italy in a few years and this is a great way to get to know the country!

to renovate an old house in a foreign country. Actually, I'm not sure that I ever had such a yearning, but I don't after reading this book. Don't get me wrong--Mayes writes beautifully about a place and activities she loves, but I definitely feel like I've been "close enough" to the hard work portion of her story!
The book drags in spots, and at times Mayes seems a bit smug and superior, but perhaps that's just contentment and appreciation filtered through print. She does, however, seem overly delighted with the "characters" she meets, as though they were less people she didn't really know well and more practitioners of quirks for her entertainment. Overall I liked the book, but I'm not sure I'd read it again--except for the recipes.

This book was a total bore, and a struggle to complete. I found the details of the renovation project to be tedious. I'd rather take a quick tour around Home Depot. I also didn't care for the author's condescending attitude to the locals, workers, etc. I've been to Italy a few times and found this unrealistic and disappointing.

Under A Tuscan Sun is one of those books that I finished just because I started it. The story idea sounds idyllic: Restore a damaged psyche by restoring an Italian villa. The problem is that the book indulges the author's egocentricity and does little else. She mentions her friend/partner/husband. We don't know the relationship because she does not bother to tell us. And she does not have him speak until 200 pages into the book. Instead, we only know him as the man who lives with her in Italy and who carries shoes.
The restoration project also reads like a joke. Mayes nearly destroys the villa by cutting a door through a loadbearing stone wall, against all advice, and then is proud that she has done so. And she blithly responds to a question about the down side of restoring an old building in another country that "There is no down side."
If you are feeling hurt and want to commmiserate with another injured soul, albeit one who clearly wallows in her pain and rejects simple virtues such as common sense, read the book. If not, you will probably wish you had read something with more depth, substance and pragmatism. Dave Barry would qualify.

A friend of Italian origin lent me "Under the Tuscan Sun" and was in raptures about the book. Sadly I found it tedious and contrived. In describing Italy one would assume there to be energy and colour. Ms Mayes' writing is the antithesis of the culture she seeks to be embraced into.

I've been fascinated with Italy ever since a brief visit there three years ago. This book brings alive the culture and rhythm of Tuscan living. As the author describes the renovation of the house and grounds and settling into Italian life, you wonder to yourself why life can't be more like that everywhere. This book made me want to go buy a house in Italy too!

Having seen and enjoyed the movie years ago, I was intrigued to get the whole story. Books usually tell it so much better. This one doesn't. So, if you're looking to read a better version of the movie, this isn't it - go buy the script.

There's no drama, no character development, no humor, no love story! It's just imagery, imagery, imagery. BORING. It was good for putting me to sleep, but that's about it. Here's the cliffsnotes version of the book: Two professors go to Italy, buy a house, fix it up, visit it every summer and Christmas and serve lots of dinners to lots of other people, all who have no story to tell either. You also get a lot of descriptions of doorways and vegetables. There, you've read it!

Whoever wrote the script for the movie was a genius to find a way to make something interesting out of this SNOOZEFEST! Save your money, go rent the movie.

Mrs. Mayes describes her experiences with brilliant color and style. Her work is flowing and rich in detail. She takes you to Tuscany and gives the sense that I am experiencing everything that she is. Her style is light and humorous, making the "trip" to Tuscany a virtual reality.

The author's wonderful writing style was so alluring that she made me interested in two things I never would have given thought to before: gardening and canning. Although these were only briefly mentioned, she made them sound so appealing. This was aided by the fact that the whole book engulfed me and made me feel like I was living her experiences. I'm also a fan now of Tuscan cooking - so simple, yet so delicious. My one dislike is of the author herself. She seems like a yuppie, and her complaints about money fall on deaf ears as she is so much of a spendthrift in Italy. It seems other readers agree - she was personally difficult to identify with.

I had the feeling I was sneaking a peek into her scrapbook, watching through the windows, and listening through the walls. I found her descriptions of daily life--the ups and downs--to be colorful and refreshing. She includes the bad experiences with the good, presenting a balanced view of her daily life in Italy. I alternated between consuming several chapters in one sitting to picking and choosing a few paragraphs to read in short sessions. Since finishing the book, I have returned to re-read several passages in an attempt to recapture a mood or a scene from her book. I have given several copies to good friends as gifts. Thank you Ms. Mayes!

What a joy to savor Frances and Ed Mayes' experience of making a new home and life changes dedicated to good food, new friends, and time to enjoy daily life. Mayes allows the reader to join the anxiety, the work and the joy of taking a risk to make life changes. The task and the outcomes are personified in rebuilding Bramasol, the house. The book, dog-earred with favorite passages, has been my good companion for over a year. The mouth watering receipes are bookmarked. Mayes'chronicled experiences come from Corona , Italy, and the surrounding Italian countryside. I adopted some of the lessons without leaving home.

I enjoyed this book very much. I saw it as a woman, over 50, after a divorce finding a new interest in life. She and a new husband discover a love for a home and property that they are renovating. It was alot of work - but worth it. The recipes are an added bonus.

I'm sorry, but who gets to define "real life"? I'm sure Frances Mayes feels that her time in Italy was quite athentic. The truth is, we have a bigger say in the life we live than we like to admit. Just because we have accepted certain ideas or limitations does not mean that everybody else must do so. And by no means should moving to another country be considered an unrealistic goal.

Now as for the disparity between the book and film: I also like to read a book to gain more depth after watching a very engrossing film. So I can relate to the disappointment someone would feel when the book doesn't deliver. However, I think we can see that in this case the book and the film have two completely different target audiences. (In fact, from skimming over the summary, it looks like someone could deduce this by reading the back cover before purchasing). So clearly, if somebody is genuinely interested in the former, then most of these reviews comparing the two should have no bearing on their decision to read it.

I should be so lucky as to have to put up with the trials and tribulations of remodeling an ancient Italian ruin! What a delight to devour this book, relishing all the while the excursions across the Tuscan countryside, the pleasant times of dining, the history lessons and the relaxed approach of local workers. To sum up my innermost feelings of this book, I read the last 30 pages, sitting on our pool deck here in the Texas Hillcountry in 100 degree heat, dipping chunks of homemade bread in olive oil and washing it down with red wine. I probably gained 3 pounds while reading this book and loved every calorie!

Frances Mayes' is a terrific writer. Her book, Under the Tuscan Sun, has inspired me in more ways than just visiting Italy---although I am anxiously awaiting my trip next year.
Her easy, no nonsense approach to writing about her daily activities, finds, pleasures, problems etc invites the reader to sit, relax and feel like you're talking to your best friend about her trip.
I absolutely loved the book. I've been tempted to take up creative writing and I would love to be one of Frances Mayes' students at SF State.
Ms. Mayes' has a beautiful way of expressive vocabulary.
The book gets FIVE STARS in my Opinion!!!!

After reading Frances Mayes, Under The Tuscan Sun. I once again I was thrust into the wonderful sights, sounds and tastes of Tuscany. It has been 15 years since my travels to Italy, however, Frances' descriptions of Tuscany are so vivid that once you begin to read you will be drawn deeper and deeper into the most wonderful memories of previous journeys. If you have never traveled to Italy, Frances' book describes the "good life in Italy exactly as it truly is. Her descriptions of the towns, the people and the food is incredible. All I had to do was shut my eyes and there I was again in beautiful Tuscany.

Frances Mayes is surprised to find Tuscany is home. Well, it is for many. The continuum from Etruscans to ribollita is endemic to the locals. Frances thinks she cannot become an Italian because she is not dark enough and cannot conjugate the verbs, but I don't think she believes that. She has come to know herself better through a profusion of enigmatic Etruscans, basilico, and other local flavors. Photographs would have been interesting, but would have limited our visions and feel of the place, and, more importantly, interfered with our own experiences, real or imagined. At times, the high quality of the prose is distracting.

Such a waste of talent! She writes beautifully, but this pretty superficial stuff. Did she find a publisher who had done market research and found that the combination of key words to get a best seller this year were Italy, food, wine, decoration and a mysterious man? (It worked, of course) Where is her sense of humor about herself, her humility about being a novice to Italy and Italian? Even for a book to read on trains or airplanes, it lacks the minimum amount of significance to make it more than a distraction. I would rather have read (another) well-written cookbook on Tuscan cookery. Or reread Dirk Bogarde's account of rebuilding a house in Provence: now there's a book!

Unlike most current travel memoir-type novels, this is not a book about travel, really. It is a book about experiences. The perspective is limited to one woman's descriptions of her daily activities in order to allow the reader to see what she sees, touch what she touches, and taste what she tastes consistently throughout the pages. It is an appeal to the senses. The book is not about Italy, it is about a place that evokes emotion and involvement in the basics of life- food and shelter. You must experience it in that context to enjoy it.

There's only one phrase for it: I loved this book! I bought it in a mixed language bookshop in Florence an it took me only a day an a half to read it while I was travelling. I was hooked from the beginning. Frances Mayes has an easy writing style, she invites you into her personal world without betraying any confidences or being too personal.
The nicest thing about the book was the combination of seasons, history and events that took place in those seasons, and the food she cooked at those times of which she supplies recipes.
It comes off as an extremely inviting and personal story of love; love for her family, her partner, and her true home in Tuscany.

In all that clutter of words do you think she could spare at least one kind or loving word for her husband (or lover) Ed? Working, working, working...to enjoy what? Things outside themselves or maybe each unto him or herself, but certainly not each other.

Purchased this book while waiting at the airport for my flight. I love everything Italian and was glad to find the book. On my flight this book took me somewhere else. It is wonderful, I could not put it down, could not wait to see what happened next.

All this book did for me was make me hungry. The author incorrectly categorized this piece as fiction and literature, when in fact it is a glamorized cookbook with some house restoration spices thrown in. I am going to cut out the recipes (most of which look quite appetizing) and use the rest of the book for firestarter.

I found this book desperately boring and only ever made it to the half-way point, as much as I tried. The only reason I saw the movie was because I was curious to know how they would make a story out of it. I, too, am saddened about the "renovation" to the load-bearing wall.

Beautiful and useful. I was looking for a desk calendar to remind me of my visit to Italy six years ago, this calendar is perfect and it also reminds me of one of my favorite movies "Under the Tuscan Sun" - not surprising since Frances Mayes's is the author of the best selling book "Under the Tuscan Sun". The photos by Stephen Rothfeld are delicious visual feasts. Every page brings a delightful surprise, visual and words. It transports me back vividly to some happy memories of time spent in Italy. Thank you!

I resisted this one for a long time, being particularly averse to financing the foreign house-buying jaunts of wealthy Americans and Brits but I gave in last week in Boston airport faced with a choice of Danielle Steel or 'Under the Tuscan Sun'. And I'm glad I did. This book is a feast of the senses. It has been a long time since I have got to the end of a chapter in a book and gone straight back to the beginning to re-read it. Perhaps it is a reflection of the current mood that I am in and my desperation for sensory stimulation, but I am enjoying every line. If I ever get around to writing, I would like to be able to put words on paper like this woman.

At least Frances Mayes had some ostensible reason for being in Italy -- she was using American dollars to buy an Italian house, thereby doing her part to drive up the cost of Italian real estate to the point that ordinary Italians can't afford to buy a house in their own country.
So Frances Mayes is not a "tourist" or a "foreigner" she reminds us repeatedly -- she is now an Italian resident. Nevermind that she doesn't speak Italian beyond a few words and Berlitz-style phrases; Mayes carefully cultivates the perception among her readers that she does understand Italian. The fact is that if she'd had a real conversation in Italian, she would have recorded it. Instead she tries to analyze random Italians on the street based on their appearance and occasional gestures.
Her social commentary on Italy is thereby reduced to conversations with fellow expats and her glimpses of Italians in public life, such as watching people in the street or purchasing things in the store. In the store, she goes so far as to request the price for a brother, not the price for a foreigner. She knowingly insinuates that the shopkeeper is going to charge her more, then pretends she deserves a discount because she has the means to buy a villa and spend half the year renovating it (rather than engaged in other meaningful employment).
In fact, I own this book and open it at least once every two months. I love it. Naive American Goes Native in Tuscany. Frances Mayes could not have done a better parody of herself if she'd tried.

Many thanks for a vicarious tour of Tuscany, complete with sun, warmth, and foods of the region. I love language, food, travel, and poetry; for me, this was the ultimate treat, especially considering January rainy days. I was moved to create new dishes in the kitchen as well as observing more clearly the beauty around me.

Having lived in Italy for two years (Naples), I could appreciate the contradictions that life in Italy is sometimes. After the first page the book begged to be read, and it was worth it just for the recipes. Italians are wonderful, passionate and humerous group of people who embrace life in ways that are hard to describe. Francis Mayes does a wonderful job of capturing life in Italy and manages to convey the love which so many of us who live here feel for the country. I was left wondering exactly who Ed is, since she never makes that very clear. But I suppose a little mystery is good for the imagination.

What a powerful talent the poet turned author is. Frances Mayes' imagery is truly evocative - compelling you out of your current surroundings and into the tumbling and fascinating world of Tuscany.
Read this, you'll love it!!

Having seen the beauty of northern Italy twice I could visualize Frances Mayes' Tuscany in her book, and the time and effort she and Ed spent fixing the "villa" with the help of local craftsmen. Loved her week-long trip by car in around the area and the information I learned, and liked the recipes.
I found the movie, that I watched a week after reading the book, a typical Hollywood cheesy take-off. No continuity of characters and the typical American/Italian love story. Read the book, forget the movie. Why not watch the 1950's "Summertime" set in Venice, with Hepburn and Brassi - far more heartwarming.

I bought this book after seein the preview for the movie, thinking it was about friendship and a woman changing her life. Needless to say, it wasn't that at all. From the moment I cracked the binding, I was already asleep. I stuck with it hoping it would get better and it didn't. I even skipped 50pgs to see if it would "perk up", it didn't. I was very disappointed in the book. I will admit to my error on not reading what the book was about, had I known, I wouldn't have bought it. I just gound the writing boring and a 200+ travel brochure to Italy. I was really excited when I bought the book, and immediatly disappointed after the first page.

On the Sunday morning I realized that I yearned for the adventure of restoring a home in Italy, I found an advertisement for a summer of study in Tuscany for an unbelievably low price. I saw myself exploring street shops, savoring expresso at sidewalk cafes, and evenings on my patio sipping locally bottled wine. Alas, reality set in and the chains that bind those of us who do not have summers of freedom to explore, tightened their grip. I will appreciate the little bit of adventure that Ms. Mayes shared with me and many of the other readers. Thank you.

I hate to jump on the pile, but this was a disappointment following the movie. Expecting details regarding the characters and situations in the movie, it was a letdown to find the book was a dry and somewhat self-absorbed account of buying, restoring, and life in a villa in Tuscany. Without an interest in nest feathering, I wouldn't have gotten past the first chapter.

The author could have found a very similar getaway only 50 or 60 miles north of her primary residence in San Francisco and saved herself a ton of money. Not as interesting a place to shop for cheese or to sip wine with expatriots, but much more convenient to "real" life.

The first third of this book convinced me that I was meant to live in romantic Tuscany. The second third of the book convinced me that if I was to buy a villa, I would not endlessly, tediously Americanize it! I couldn't bring myself to plod through the last third of the book.
The descriptions of Mayes' arrival in Tuscany and purchase of a summer home were delightful. The gardens and the food sounded absolutely scrumptious! The recipes look wonderful. So cut the writing in half and add more recipes, and the book would be perfect... and we would be spared the pretentiousness of the author.

What do people want Frances to write about? Her trials and tribulations? How she had to take a second mortgage on her California home to finance her Italian one? Then you'd say she was nothing but a complainer. Do you want French words in a book about Italy? As for Frances trying to be Peter Mayle, I never saw that. I think you all were EXPECTING Peter Mayle and when you got Frances instead, you decided to attack her! Lighten up, please! This is a sweet, friendly little look at Tuscany and I know I will treasure it!

To complain that the book version is nothing like the movie is just plain silly. Under the Tuscan Sun is a lovely, leisurely metaphor into renovating a house and a heart -- both in mid-life (the house, already ancient, is probably bound to last another 500 years -- with or without her possible ill-considered ministrations). For readers who love contemplative, descriptive, transcendent writing, this book is for you. For readers looking for sex and a facile, pandering story line, go see the movie.
I only wish the movie were closer to the original. I understand the need to create a dramatic story line, but I think that could have been done by using the real characters of Frances and Ed (with his growing muscles and wall-building, stone schlepping determination). And the bucket of cement is far more entertaining than the fabricated pigeon poop moment in the movie.
Having just delivered my ninth book to my publisher, I promised myself two weeks of dolce far niente. Tops on that list was rereading Under the Tuscan Sun on my own balcony surrounded by palms and cypress -- in this case just an hour south of her other hometown -- San Francisco. Just what the doctor ordered.

I am there when I read Mayes' writing. Her details and descriptions capture my attention and imagination. Recently in LA, I missed a flight connection because I was reading Mayes instead of paying attention to announcements. It's that good!

For all of F.M.'s knowledge of Italian (restaurant-menu level) and friendships with locals (limited to expats and Polish workmen under her employ), she may as well as saved herself some commute time and bought a farmhouse in Napa.

This is beautifully written and I hated that for a bit. The author writes with such passion and desire for Tuscany that i thought she was exaggerating and I nearly put the book down. Then I came upon the recipes she included and for whatever reason that hooked and kept me reading till the end. This is a very good book.

After many brave attempts to read this book, I had to concede defeat after page number 62. It took me a good one week to reach that far. I have been to Tuscany and to be honest, the book doesn't seem to do any justice to the beautiful place. The prose is verbose, lackadaisical and (worst of all) bereft of any humor. On many occasions, the writer makes sudden tangential diversions (with unknown characters) confusing and subsequently irritating the reader. And, did I mention that there are many recipes in book? Totally unacceptable for a memoir-based travel book.

If you have seen the movie already, then the book might be a little difficult (and boring) to read.

I didn't finish the first 20 pages of this book. The author seems very much a person who went to Italy to purchase a house and fields just to say she did (and does) it. No real interest in the history or culture of the area from what I read. Another reader said, "overeducated individuals with exagerated views" and hit it right on the head.
To me anyway the book appears to be in the same vein as "Without Reservations." With that one, as well as Tuscan Sun, I went looking for a light summer read and this was disappointingly not it.

I purchased this book at the airport in Milwaukee about two months after returning from my honeymoon in Europe. This book brought me back to the glorious state of mind I enjoyed while there in person. Between the great characters involved in this project they embarked on and the continuous mouth watering talk of great local foods I could barley keep myself from searching for properties for sale in Tuscany...

This book was a horrendous waste of precious free time. Mayes is pretentious, boring, and a bad writer to boot. I have no idea why the book was so critically acclaimed. The renovations are so laboriously described, I wanted to scream. Her sprinkling of cute little Italian words everywhere is so very precious--it's like Mayes is saying, 'Look at me, I speak Italian! Aren't you jealous?'. Well, I speak French, and this book is merde. I almost bought the book, but luckily ended up borrowing it instead. If I had spent money on it, I think I would have to write to Mayes and ask for my money back.

On the one hand, her desciption of the Italian cuisine would make anyone salivate. However, I was rather disappointed in the rather shallow descriptions of Italy and the Italians for that matter. I don't believe she captured the core of the Italians she met. She seemed to describe them as "The Italians", rather than individuals like you and I. Though I must admit she wrote beautifully, she tried too hard to write from an "Italian" point of view and failed miserably. As an Italian reviewer wrote, try Tim Parks' An Italian Neighbour or An Italian Education.

The descriptions of food go on and on. Actually, the descriptions of EVERYTHING go on and on. They're not interesting or enchanting they are just words on a page. The main problems:
Mayes' tone is condescending (and that's being kind). She acts as if she discovered Cortona, villa renovation and fresh produce. Please! I kept hoping a big Tuscan stone would hit her on the head so she could acquire a new attitude.
I can't even describe the plot because there isn't one. Travel logs are fun, exciting, amusing; I didn't even crack a smile as I read about food, stones, food, Frances Mayes and food. So, she's a good cook. I got it already, no need to talk about it for 200+ pages.
Characters besides Mayes and her high opinion of herself are nonexistent; 280 pages - is Ed her husband, her boyfriend, her slave? Whatever, I don't even care anymore. I'd feel sorry for him if I could figure out who he is.
I could go on and on, but I'm not Frances Mayes so I won't.
My advice to her is to get over herself. My advice to a potential reader is to get over your impulse to read this book.

I found myself laughing out loud. Especially at her description of Italians using their hands to talk and her significant other's penchant for Espresso before bed, giving him the strength to sleep. The recipes are a delightful bonus. I can't wait to see the movie.

I loved this book. Having studied abroad in Rome for a semester and having traveled throughout Italy, I feel that this book gives you a real glimpse into Italian life. If you have seen the movie, do not expect it to be the same. The book focuses more on the refurbishing of Bramasole and Frances' adjustment to life in Italy. There is also information on Italian cuisine and cooking.

I did not expect to like this book because it has been so popular, and I have not wanted to put it down. Frances Mayes has made evcerything about her journey sound interesting, even the part wehre she explains how they have to get rid of her trash! Most of all, it has made me feel like I am in Tuscany, and has probalby openend up the country to more tourism than a million guide books would!

Oh dear, what have the poor Italians, French and Spaniards ever done to deserve the influx of well-heeled foreigners who decide to settle in their midst and then proceed to patronize them with books like this?

This is the usual story of someone who loved a place located far from home, her attempts to find an affordable house there, the magical moment when she found it and her fantasies about the blissful years ahead, sharing delightful meals with friends on the terrace and admiring wonderful views - that is, once she has installed all the conveniences of modern life like running water, electricity etc.

Unfortunately, to achieve this nirvana, she has to deal with the crafty locals who are out to milk the ignorant incomer and relieve her of her savings.

After all the trials, it turns out that, despite their external appearances, each one of these local peasants, storekeepers, lawyers, builders etc. has a heart of gold and everyone lives happily ever after.

(Unless you are Dirk Bogarde, that is, whose never-ending autobiographies chronicled more of the downs than the ups and his subsequent decision to leave his idyllic place in Provence as illness, old age and encroaching urbanization destroyed his dream.)

The subject has been done to death and does not improve with repetition.

I thought this might be different as it was written by an American rather than a European but I was wrong. It is as dull as a plate of cold overcooked pasta washed down with tap water.

What a delightful read. It was a wonderful escape into another world. I world I never have thought much of before. Italy was not very high up on my travel list, but after reading this book it has moved up considerable. If you enjoy reading about different cultures, enjoy cooking, and/or house decorating and renovation, that this is a must read.

The author's descriptions of the food and the scenery were the best parts of the book. However, the author was too technically descriptive regarding the villa's restoration. It was difficult to visualize the before and after without pictures to support her efforts. Also, a map of Italy and surrounding areas would have been a helpful reference point for the reader as well as glossary of the Italian terms she referenced quite frequently.
Overall, I enjoyed the book but it was not worth the hype surrounding it.

I hoped this book would be beautifully written, a quick but satisfying read. When you're writing about Italy, where can you go wrong? Well, Mayes showed me exactly how you can turn an interesting life story into a boring, monotonous book that won't end - just like those summer days in Tuscany. I also thought that Mayes' descriptions of the Italian culture were sometimes condescending. Oh, those quirky Italians with their weird manners, tiny fridges and no sense of time! Speaking of fridges, why are there two long chapters devoted solely to recipes? Not much happens in the other chapters, either.

Italy deserves to be described by a better writer.

I, like many other readers, was put off by the author's flippancy at spending money. The book was full of complaining about the costs of extreme renovations and their inconviences. I was also quite irritated when the author insinuates those that try to get a crash course in Europe, i.e. those who CAN'T afford an Italian farm house and the ability to spend 3-4 months away from there domestic jobs, are inferior to people like herself. Additionally, I found her writing to be rather unstructured. Perhaps, I would have enjoyed this more if it had been written by a poor, struggling graduate student sleeping in hostels and taking odd jobs. If you'd like a book with a similar concept (foreigner moves to another country to fix up rustic farmhouse), I would recommend "A Year in Provence" by Peter Mayle.

Lyrically written but ultimately quite disappointing. Unfortunately I have to agree with other readers who found this book pretentious and self indulgent.
A vastly superior book about authentic Tuscan country life and food is Elizabeth Romer's The Tuscan Year.
Tim Parks, a British author, and Paul Hoffman, the former Roman bureau chief for the NYT, have written a number of books about their lives as expatriates in Italy--Parks lives in the Veneto and Hoffman in Rome. Their books are keenly insightful and thought provoking and well worth reading.

Am about halfway through the book and struggling to finish it. I'm not sure what I don't like about it, but I get the sense that Ms. Mayes is a little condescending toward her Italian hosts, the citizens of Cortona.
I'm not sure what I expected from this book, but it certainly wasn't so much about the remodelling of her 2nd home. You win some you lose some. I also bought Romer's book, so maybe that will be more what I want: food and wine and authentic living...not just some bourgeois lady who bemoans the troubles of Martha Stewart.

This book has something special, something, that few others have: it goes deeply under your skin. Italy is far ahead of us in the art of living, and Frances Mayes understood, watched, enjoyed, and then shared it. She was very brave to dare buying a house in Tuscany. I did the same, therefore I know. I feel as if I know her personally, and I hope her book helps that many other people understand the importance of realizing at least one of our dreams.

For anyone who loves Italy this book is a treasure ! Every day I was reading this, I couldn't wait to see what Frances was up to that day in her charming house ! Go to Italy without even leaving your house ! Well worth the read !!

Mayes manages to make a potentially drab subject very interesting. I enjoyed a really atmospheric impression of what Tuscany is like. Occasionally humorous, great insight and well chosen detail for an introduction to Italy. The disappointment is in the unusual world view that sees such great value in relatively unimportant matters. Descriptions of food and landscapes sometimes descend into ridiculous meaningfulness. Rescued toward the end of the book by the beginnings of a religious exploration.

Read (or maybe reread) this while preparing for a vacation in Italy, finished on the plane trip home. Perfect book for such a trip. Even the recipes were inspiring for this fast-food junkie. Beautifully written.