Homesick for Italy

I was born in Italy thanks to the US Army, but left as a small child. So my homesickness is shaped by the "year in /tuscan sun" style books.

A few years ago, Annie Hawes wrote a fun book about she and her sister, Lucy going to Liguria. They go for a "free" Italian vacation paid for by grafting rose bushes. The first book "Extra Virgin" chronicles this adventure and buying a home in the area.

I just finished her second book "Ripe for the Picking". Lucy has gone to Bulgaria to teach English. Now Annie is on her own or is she? Turns out she has gone and fallen in love with Ciccio, who owns a local restaurant. Now she is enveloped into a large exuberant family, originally from Southern Italy. This book is a delight.

I am looking forward to reading "Journey to the South", which is her trip with her fiance and his family back to Calabria.