Wednesday, April 8, 2015

The top ten books about Italy

John Hooper is the author of The Italians and the Southern Europe editor of the Guardian and Observer.

He tagged his top ten books about Italy, including:
The Sack of Rome by Alexander Stille

It is striking how many books about Italy have deceptive titles. This one is really a biography of Silvio Berlusconi. It suffered from being published in 2006 when the media tycoon had just lost an election and his political career seemed over. The Sack of Rome pre-dates Bunga Bunga, but foreshadows it, and remains the most penetrating exploration of the doings of the man who, more than any, has shaped the outlook of today’s Italians: “Berlusconi believes that the world revolves him – the ultimate narcissistic fantasy – but he has bent reality to fit his fantasy, so that much of life in Italy does indeed revolve around him.”
Read about the other entries on the list.

--Marshal Zeringue