Sass, Smarts and Stilettos

"We don't accept the ordinary. We dig in and do what we've always done. We get creative, and we transform it."
~ Sass, Smarts, and Stilettos, Gabriella Contestabile


Published in 2017, Sass, Smarts, and Stilettos: How Italian Women Make the Ordinary, Extraordinary by Gabriella Contestabile is a book that focuses on Italian women. The author was born in Italy, and raised in Ottawa and NYC. In 1953, when she was four years old, her family traveled on the Andrea Doria, "a floating museum of art, technology, and timeless Italian good taste" from the port of Genova to North America, because her father has been transferred from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Rome to the Italian embassy in Ottawa.  Three years later, the Andrea Doria sank after being hit by the SS Stockholm near Nantucket, and this floating museum of Italian art and history was lost forever. This loss contributed to the author's decision to live fully and to savor life's joyful but fleeting moments. In 1959, she emigrated with her family to New York, when her father was transferred from the Italian Embassy in Ottawa to the Italian Consulate in New York City, and begin a new life in Astoria, Queens.

Written in a warm and friendly manner, this book is a personal story that's quite entertaining and informative. Sass, Smarts, and Stilettos is filled with practical tips and wisdom. As the title promises, it discusses what makes Italians, and especially Italian women, extraordinary. There are many anecdotes and glorious details in this inspiring book that reveal the secrets of Italian women. The basic idea is that Italian women make the ordinary extraordinary due to their innate appreciation for beauty and their deep connection with art.  They use the passion, focus, and purpose that are part of their cultural identity.

Sass, Smarts, and Stilettos is a short, charming book that may well entice you to visit Italy.  (I haven't been to Italy yet, but coincidentally, one of my sister-in-laws traveled to Italy last month, and my son is going next month.) The cover by Katerina Miras is lovely.  There are thirty-two chapters in this book, plus a helpful Italian Glossary in the back.  Each chapter is titled and begins with a quotation (or two) that relates to the subject matter. Chapter titles describe the contents in a tempting and down-to-earth manner, and reveal the author's ideas and philosophy. These titles say a lot.  Here are some examples: Chapter Two - The Extraordinary in the Ordinary, Chapter Nine - Food, the Talisman of Happiness, Chapter Eleven - Joy in Simple Things,  Chapter Eighteen - Style is Ageless,  Chapter Twenty-Four - Your Life is Your Biggest Work of Art, Chapter Twenty-Nine - Secrets of an Italian Woman's Skin. They're fun to read (and may be read out of order, I think, especially during a second reading).  I should also mention a chapter that features numerous fashion, style tips, and some guide books, Chapter Twenty-Seven - She Who Spends More, Spends Less. The important idea of this chapter is to choose wisely. Choose homemade, healthy food, and well-made clothing and furnishings.  Compre meno, compra meglio--buy less, buy better.  This means buying less things, but buying the best things, and appreciating and taking care of them.  This is something that Italians are good at. Quality is of the utmost importance.

Mamma mia, did this book resonate with me!  This is how I was brought up, too, to appreciate quality, rather than quantity.  I'm part Italian so this makes sense. This book talks a lot about clothing.  My mother, who was half Italian, had a wonderful fashion sense. She was a sharp dresser, and her clothing was gorgeous.  When I was in high school, I used to borrow her beautiful work blouses and wear them with jeans (I wanted to look elegant but cool). Today, my work wardrobe is simple and (hopefully) classic. I bring various tailoring projects to the dry cleaning shop nearby, and have been pleased with the results. The food in this book will make you crave savory (or sweet) Italian food.  My Italian grandfather appreciated fine food and drink, and during my childhood he would bring my family freshly-baked, crusty bread, and special cheese from Italian markets in NYC (I've mentioned this before in a previous post). I still think about how delicious these treats were. This book brought back delightful memories, and I learned many things about Italy.

Sass, Smarts, and Stilettos is a beautiful memoir, a travel guide with style and substance, and a wonderful reference book, for all things Italiano, or perhaps Italiana, given the focus of this book. I enjoyed reading it very much.

Gabriella Contestabile

Connect with the Author: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ Instagram ~ LinkedIn

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Many thanks to Laura from Italy Book Tours for inviting me to be a part of this tour and for sending me a copy of this book free of charge.  For more reviews of this book, giveaways, and other features, please visit Italy Book Tours' other stops for Sass, Smarts, and Stilettos.

Thanks for reading! Your comments are appreciated.

Dreaming Sophia: Book Spotlight

é bella! While I don't judge books by their covers, Dreaming Sophia: Because Dreaming is an Art caught my eye, due to its vibrant, colorful cover, which was designed and illustrated by the author, Melissa Muldoon. This author also has a dual-language blog, Studentessa Matta, and a special YouTube channel, to help others who wish to learn to speak Italian and to learn about the culture.

Here is my personal connection to Dreaming Sophia, which I hope to read, and all things Italian. Some of you may already know that I'm part Italian. My grandfather, Luigi, was from Sardinia.  He immigrated to Ellis Island, lived in NY, got married, and worked hard (he did something with boats at NY Harbor, I believe).  Grandpa was a gifted, ambidextrous musician who played the lute (and perhaps other instruments as well), and his eyes changed color.  He was fascinated by geography and was quite knowledgeable.  Perhaps because I was a skinny kid, he used to explain to me that there are three basic body types, ectomorph, endomorph, and mesomorph.  While I was growing up, Grandpa would bring our family the most delicious bread (and cheese) from a special Italian shop, which was probably the best I've ever tasted.  My mother, Lita Anna Maria, was proud of her Italian heritage (her homemade lasagna was world-class), and I am, too.  I'd love to travel to Italy in the future!

Below is more information about Dreaming Sophia, which was published in 2016, and author Melissa Muldoon.

Book Description:

Dreaming Sophia is a magical look into Italy, language, art, and culture. It is a story about turning dreams into reality and learning to walk the fine line between fact and fantasy. When tragedy strikes, Sophia finds herself alone in the world, without direction and fearful of loving again. With only her vivid imagination to guide her, she begins a journey that will take her from the vineyards in Sonoma, California to a grad school in Philadelphia and, eventually, to Italy: Florence, Lucca, Rome, Verona, Venice, and Val d’Orcia.

​Through dreamlike encounters, Sophia meets Italian personalities—princes, poets, duchesses, artists, and film stars— who give her advice to help put her life back together. Following a path that takes her from grief to joy, she discovers the source of her creativity and learns to love again, turning her dreams into reality.

“Italy is the answer.”

Buy the Book: 

Amazon – print
Amazon / Kindle – ebook
Create Space
I-tunes – Apple Store-ebook
Barnes & Noble – ebook
Inktera-ebook


Author's Bio:

Melissa Muldoon is the Studentessa Matta-the crazy linguist! In Italian, "matta" means "crazy" or "impassioned". Melissa has a B.A. in fine arts, art history and European history from Knox College, a liberal arts college in Galesburg, Illinois, as well as a master's degree in art history from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. She has also studied painting and art history in Florence.

Melissa promotes the study of Italian language and culture through her dual-language blog, Studentessa Matta (studentessamatta.com). Melissa began the Matta blog to improve her command of the language and to connect with other language learners. It has since grown to include a podcast, "Tutti Matti per l'Italiano" and the Studentessa Matta YouTube channel. Melissa also created Matta Italian Language Immersion Tours, which she co-leads with Italian partners in Italy.

Dreaming Sophia is Melissa's first novel.  It is a fanciful look at art history and Italian language and culture, but it is also the culmination of personal stories and insights resulting from her experiences living in Italy, as well as her involvement and familiarity with the Italian language, painting, and art history.

As a student, Melissa lived in Florence with an Italian family. She studied art history and painting and took beginner Italian classes. When she returned home, she threw away her Italian dictionary, assuming she'd never need it again but after launching a successful design career and starting a family, she realized something was missing in her life. That "thing" was the connection she had made with Italy and the friends who live there.  Living in Florence was indeed a life-changing event! Wanting to reconnect with Italy, she decided to start learning the language again from scratch. As if indeed possessed by an Italian muse, she bought a new Italian dictionary and began her journey to fluency-a path that has led her back to Italy many times and enriched her life in countless ways.

Now, many dictionaries and grammar books later, she dedicates her time to promoting Italian language studies, further travels in Italy, and sharing her stories and insights about Italy with others. When Melissa is not traveling in Italy, she lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. She is married and has three boys and two beagles.

Melissa designed and illustrated the cover art for Dreaming Sophia. She also designed the Dreaming Sophia website and created the character illustrations that can be found in the book and on the Dreaming Sophia websites.

Connect with the Author:   Website  ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ YouTube ~ Pinterest

Author Melissa Muldoon with actress Sophia Loren

Warm thanks to Laura from Italy Book Tours for inviting me to be a part of this tour.  For more spotlights of this book as well as some giveaways, please visit Italy Book Tours' other stops for Dreaming Sophia. 

The Supreme Macaroni Company: Review and Giveaway

When Laura from Italy Book Tours invited me to participate in the tour for The Supreme Macaroni Company by Adriana Trigiani, I was overjoyed.  I'd been interested in reading the work of this author since encountering Brava, Valentine on the book blog, Dolce Bellezza; Bellezza's posts are often quite tantalizing.  At last, I had the perfect opportunity to read a novel by this multi-talented and prolific author!

"The stealth difference:  we're both Italians, but I was an American first and he was truly an Italian first.  All the vowels in the world that we had in common couldn't make up for the disparity in our points of view."
~ The Supreme Macaroni Company, Adriana Trigiani

Published in 2013, The Supreme Macaroni Company is the story of Valentine Roncalli, a talented shoemaker who enjoys working  at the Angelini Shoe Company in Greenwich Village, NY.  The beginning of the book centers around Valentine's upcoming marriage to Gianluca Vechiarelli, a handsome, blue-eyed tanner from Italy.  Although Val is independent and career-minded, she wants to be happily married, but she knows that there will be obstacles to overcome, including a "glandular predisposition that prevents true happiness".  She loves Gianluca, but she's worried about how her life will change once she's married.  Val's mostly concerned because she thinks that Gianluca, who's eighteen-years older than she is and has an ex-wife and a grown daughter, would prefer to live in Italy.  This novel explores many aspects of love, work, location, and family, and the connections between them.

What did I think of my first novel by Adriana Trigiani?  Although I learned that this is the third book in the Valentine Trilogy, which includes Very Valentine (2009) and Brava, Valentine (2010), I didn't have a difficult time following the story (although I'd like to read the other two books in this series at some point).  At the start of the book is an elegantly-rendered family tree which is helpful, especially if you stumble a bit over Italian last names (one of my goals in writing this review was to master the spelling of the author's name, A-d-r-i-a-n-a  T-r-i-g-i-a-n-i).  The author's writing lived up to my expectations; it's very lovely, and it's also very funny at times.  The story is mostly set in two superlative places, in NY and Italy, and the descriptions of Italy furthered my desire to travel to this bella country.  Magical writing brought Val, Gianluca, Dutch, Mom, Aunt Feen, and many other characters to life.  I relished the company of Valentine and her large and lively Italian family, as they gathered together to experience and celebrate life.

The Supreme Macaroni Company made me smile, it made me laugh, and it made me cry (just a bit).  It touched my emotions.  It also made me think about how I spend my time, and what my priorities truly are.  I'm thrilled to now have the chance to share this novel with a reader.  The publisher is generously offering a giveaway for an autographed copy of The Supreme Macaroni Company (U.S. only).

• To enter this giveaway, simply leave a comment.
• For another chance at winning, become a follower of this blog, or let me know that you're already a follower.
• For an additional chance, post about this contest on your blog, Facebook, Pinterest, or Twitter.
• For one more entry, mention a different book by Adriana Trigiani that you've enjoyed reading.

Enter by 5 PM PDT on Monday, August 18.  One winner will be selected randomly and announced on Tuesday, August 19.  Buona fortuna!

Grazie to Laura from Italy Book Tours for sending me a copy of this book, and for offering this giveaway through the publisher.  I'm honored to be the first stop on this book tour.  For more reviews and giveaways, please visit Italy Book Tours' other stops for The Supreme Macaroni Company.