Under the Tuscan Sun: At Home in Italy Paperback – September 2, 1997

Somehow, I do not believe this book needs my review to help it sell... It is a wonderful read and I have really been enjoying it as a summer book. One thing to stress: if you are coming to this book because you love the movie, it is barely recognizable as the same work! The movie is in my top ten favorite movies list, I've seen it about thirty times, so I'm familiar enough with it to make the solid comparison. Tons of the book got included in the movie, like the famous line about the hot grape "it even smells purple" but the movie fictionalized almost all the characters and the romantic story didn't happen in real life this way. Frances and Ed bought the house together, she didn't meet him at the end of the story. If you can free your mind from these expectations, you will find a rich and loving narrative that easily draws you in and keeps you riveted long past the time you should have turned out the light and gone to bed.

Loved Mayes writing, recipes, and just, soothing way she writes about her life in Italy; even when facing barriers. The only thing that didn’t earn it a 5 is that it started to feel a little too predictable and I started to wonder when it would end, but for the most part, a relaxing, enjoyable read.

Bought a gift for a family member. She loved it. Great quality

Even if I never get to go back, I've been able to travel to Tuscany (Florence, specifically), and that makes me incredibly lucky. But it's one level of privilege to be able to visit briefly. It's a whole other level to be able to buy property over there and actually live there for parts of the year. But what some of us can only dream of, others are able to make happen and Frances Mayes' Under the Tuscan Sun recounts her experiences buying and renovating a farmhouse in Cortona, Italy, and the first years she spent with it as her Christmas and summer home.First things first: the movie (which I've never seen) is apparently not a strict adaptation of the book. While in both cases Frances' divorce from an apparently very wealthy man (she mentions it only vaguely in the book) is what enables her to purchase the home, the movie apparently gives her a hot new Italian man to mend her broken heart. In reality/the book, she is already happily remarried by the time she decides to start looking for a summer home in Italy. Let me stress that again: they have the means to start searching for a summer home in ITALY. If rich white people doing home renovation, eating food, and contemplating their navels is not your deal, this book will not be for you. I've seen rather a lot of negative reviews focused on the premise that the book is not like the movie and/or annoyed that it's about nothing more than wealthy people doing construction and eating.There are reasons I found the book to be a mixed bag (hence the very middle of the road rating), but they don't have anything to do with either the lack of romance or the privilege. Well, sort of the latter, I guess, because my biggest beef with the book is that there isn't really any conflict. Story structure has remained remarkably consistent over recorded history, which means there are clearly elements that are naturally appealing to people when they're taking in a tale. One of the fundamental pieces of a story is conflict: we want to see our protagonists struggle with obstacles. Frances...doesn't, really. She obliquely mentions that things are expensive, but there's never any indication she has to scrimp or save or go without in order to afford them. She and her husband do a lot of DIY to fix the place up, but the impression is that they enjoy doing it, and don't need to do it for money's sake. It all just seems to roll along...they find the house, they buy it, they do gradual repairs, they start spending a lot of time there, they make new friends, and they're happy. Which must be lovely to experience, but pretty boring to read about.What saves it from being a total snooze is the writing. Mayes is a poet, and it shows. It's beautifully written, and the way she writes lets you see with your mind's eye the lawn at Bramasole with the bright yellow table she had painted, loaded with fresh and simple but delicious food, looking out on the olive trees and flowers and rolling hills. There's an enjoyable element of wish fulfillment fantasy...very very few people will ever get to live the kind of dreamy life she shows us (I have no doubt there were and are less wonderful elements behind the scenes, but she doesn't go into them), so it gives us a window into what seems like an incredible experience. But I had trouble focusing on it because I was honestly mostly bored after about the first 100 pages or so.

This is such a beautifully written book. I felt like I was right there as they were remodeling the house and walking the streets of the various cities of Italy. I want to take off for a month and travel Italy seeing the beautiful sights and eating the wonderful food.

I have seen the movie countless times and own a copy. It is my "feel good movie" even though it is not an amazing film. I have been dying to visit Tuscany ever since. This past May, I finally made it to Italy. While in Florence, we were having dinner with a fellow traveller when the movie, Under The Tuscan Sun, came up in conversation. I was surprised to learn that the book (which I hadn't read at that time) was a quite different, true story and that it was possible to visit Bramasole in Cortona. The acquaintance,with whom we were dining, complained that he loved the book but was so disappointed when he saw the movie because they had made it into a "chick flick". I had to laugh and agree that this was true, which is probably why I loved it so much.Thus the motivation to read the book. I enjoyed it immensely, even though the story is somewhat different from the film. I am completely envious of the author and her ability to make the dream come true. On my next visit to Italy, I hope to meet her and discover how they made it possible considering how expensive it must have been to renovate their home, even if it was awhile ago, before Italy became outrageously expensive. It is a charming story about renovating their home, about the food, the wine, the people, the history, the art, architecture, culture and spirit of Italy. I hope one day to find my "Under The Tuscan Sun" home and make it my reality. The book gave me hope that anything is possible.