August 2024 was spent in Italy. It was hot, tourist-filled and a lot of fun. I was there for a book fair in a town called Sant. Andrea di Conza, a town in the Campania region south of Naples. Held on August 21 & 22, the fair showcased books by three political figures, they were the main attraction. My little book La Decisione Presa, the translated version of my debut, The Decision They Made, was popular, with people willingly taking my bookmarks and asking questions about the story.
Before and after the book fair, I visited many other cultural regions in Italy - Puglia, Amalfi Coast, Sardinia, and Milan. These are all amazing places to visit if you enjoy great food, books, art, culture, and fashion. I was pleased to see people reading on trains, buses and in parks. Many also read in the bookshops with cafes, the Libreria Liberrima in Bari next to our hotel had people browsing, eating and drinking, and of course, reading. We relaxed and enjoyed a cocktail or two in this bookshop. I recommend visiting this bookshop if you're ever in Bari.
Spending four weeks in this part of the world promoting my books was wonderful. Not only was the book fair successful, I managed to leave a book in the Sant. Andrea Di Conza library/bookshop and two in Florence - one at the Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale and another at the Biblioteca delle Oblate.
I attended this book fair in Southern Italy to promote the Italian version of my debut novel. My parents were born in Sant. Andrea and the town was where I took inspiration for my story. The front cover of my novel has an arch that is one of the entries into the town and I used my grandparents' basement as part of the story too. On this trip I discovered the basement has two entries, it spans two streets.
The first time I visited this town I was five years old and travelled there with my parents. I remember stepping into the basement, it was dark, dank and smelled of wine. That image stayed with me and, when I was eighteen I returned to the town and saw the basement again. I could still smell the wine even though the basement only housed firewood at the time. It was this basement and the many stories I heard growing up in an Italian household that inspired me to write this book. It is dedicated to my parents who migrated to Australia in the 1950s and made a life for themselves in a country vastly different from their own.
My emotions were running high on this trip, as not only was I promoting a book I had written and had it translated into Italian, but I also saw family members who I had not seen in twenty years. This trip was a lovely way to showcase my book and get to know my cousins all over again. A big thank you to everyone in Sant. Andrea di Conza for your hospitality, I will remember this trip for the rest of my life.
Note:
I received this lovely message from my cousins, Andrea and Enza after they read this and my book, La Decisione Presa -
There is the skill of Maria Pina the writer, who described the holiday in Italy together with her Tony, in great detail and there is the nostalgic Maria Pina, linked to her roots and family. In short, you are complete, there is precision and a lot of heart in your reportage. Two components that are also present in your book. We read it and it was a pleasant read, it's a story that grabs you and projects you into the story of the protagonists. Yours is a continuous gift like this and you will have the success you deserve. With love Andrea and Enza
I thank you with all my heart my dear cousins.
Happy reading,
Maria P Frino
Comments