Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Mar 2019
448 pages
Genre: Travel & Adventure
Publication Information
Bestselling and beloved author Frances Mayes discovers the hidden pleasures of Italy in a sumptuous travel narrative that crisscrosses the country, with inventive new recipes celebrating Italian cuisine.
The Roman Forum, the Leaning Tower, the Piazza San Marco: these are the sights synonymous with Italy. But such landmarks only scratch the surface of this magical country's offerings. In See You in the Piazza, Frances Mayes introduces us to the Italy only the locals know, as she and her husband, Ed, eat and drink their way through all twenty regions - from Friuli to Sicily. Along the way, she seeks out the cultural and historic gems not found in traditional guidebooks.
Frances conjures the enchantment of the backstreets, the hubbub of the markets, the dreamlike wonder of that space between lunch and dinner when a city cracks open to those who would wander or when a mind is drawn into the pages of a delicious book - and discloses to us the secrets that only someone who is on intimate terms with a place could find.
"Starred Review. Mayes has a wonderful eye for detail as she lyrically describes her surroundings... Readers will want to take their time, savoring this poetic travelogue like a smooth wine." - Publishers Weekly
"Starred Review. Recommended for those who look for the unexpected when they travel." - Library Journal
"A charming homage to upscale travel through Italy." - Kirkus
This information about See You in the Piazza was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Frances Mayes is an American university professor, poet, memoirist, essayist, and novelist.
Born and raised in Fitzgerald, Georgia, Mayes attended Randolph-Macon Woman's College in Lynchburg, Virginia, and obtained her BA from the University of Florida. In 1975 she earned her MA from San Francisco State University, where she eventually became Professor of Creative Writing, director of The Poetry Center, and chair of the Department of Creative Writing.
Her works include Climbing Aconcagua (1977), Sunday in Another Country (1977), After Such Pleasures (1979), and Ex Voto (1995). In addition to her Tuscany memoirs, Under the Tuscan Sun and Bella Tuscany, she has authored the illustrated books In Tuscany and Bringing Tuscany Home; Swan, a novel and The Discovery of Poetry, a text for readers....
... Full Biography
Author Interview
Link to Frances Mayes's Website
Your guide toexceptional books
BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.