Dances with Luigi: A Grandson's Determined Quest to Comprehend Italy and the Italians [Hardcover]

Paul Paolicelli (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 10, 2000

In this spirited memoir, veteran TV journalist Paul Paolicelli does what many of us can only dream of--he picks up and moves to a foreign country in an attempt to trace his ancestral roots. With the help of Luigi, his guide and companion, he travels through Italy--Rome, Gamberale, Matera, Miglionico, Alessandria, even Mussolini's hometown of Predappio--and discovers the tragic legacy of the Second World War that is still affecting the Old Country. He visits ancient castles and village churches, samples superb Italian cuisine, haggles at the open air market at Porta Portese, enjoys and Alessandria siesta, and frequents "coffee bars", where beggars discuss politics with affluent Italian locals. He finds lost-lost cousins during the day and performs with an amateur jazz group during the night. Along the way, he discovers deeply moving stories about his family's past and learns answers to question that have plagued him since childhood.
More that just a spiritual account of one man's ancestral search, Dances With Luigi is also a stunning portrait of la bella Italia--both old and new--that is painted beautifully in all of its glamour, history, and contradiction.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Heartfelt but unfocused, Paolicelli's memoir recounts the television journalist's trip to Italy, where he hoped to find out more about his family's history and an estranged relative. In 1991, after a year of Italian lessons, Paolicelli's vague yearning to know more about his immigrant grandparents gave way to action when he found out he could gain a European passport if he located his grandfather's Italian birth certificate. A 40-something bachelor, Paolicelli decided to take the money he'd been saving for the education of his non-existent children and go live in Rome. Throughout Paolicelli's adventures, his neighbor, Luigi, serves as his guide around Rome and Italy in general, but the author takes an unusual liberty with this character. Though Luigi is based on Paolicelli's real-life neighbor, Paolicelli declares at the beginning of his book that "the character of Luigi" is actually a composite, one that the author sometimes uses as a mouthpiece to express "the contemporary Italian view." When Paolicelli does track down some relatives, his emotions are poignant, if predictable: anger that his grandparents were kept illiterate by a faulty educational system; shock at hearing the familiar sounds of their local dialect. There are also plenty of anecdotes about Italian culture--including one concerning a restaurateur in rural Abruzzi who raises the very lamb he serves, and another about the incredible cliff-side homes of the Sassi di Matera. But Paolicelli's long slog through Italian bureaucracy quickly grows as trying for the reader as it does for him, and his narrative has a tendency to ramble without providing the kind of historical context that would make this book appeal to a wider readership. (Apr.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Award-winning television journalist Paolicelli has written a beautiful story that traces the history of his grandfather's life in Italy in an attempt to learn more about his own roots. A natural-born storyteller, Paolicelli immediately grabs the reader's attention in his prolog, describing his Italian family members and the passing of the older generation. His search begins in Rome, where Paolicelli gets help from his Italian neighbor Luigi, who takes him under his wing and acts as his translator, his chauffeur, and his contact throughout the entire journey. Vivid descriptions of the Italian countryside and its people carry the reader along on this three-year journey of self-discovery. The search ends in Matera, where Paolicelli finally learns the answers to his questions and comes, finally, to know the man his grandfather was. A compelling and moving memoir, this tale is remembered long after it has been read. Recommended for public libraries.
-Stephanie Papa, Baltimore Cty. Circuit Court Law Lib.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books; 1st edition (April 10, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312251882
• ISBN-13: 978-0312251888
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,833,741 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Super Read. It Sings!, March 13, 2000

By 

Helen Stavrou (New York City) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dances with Luigi: A Grandson's Determined Quest to Comprehend Italy and the Italians (Hardcover)

"Dances with Luigi" is a super read. It sings. It transported me to Rome--into the coffee bar in a side street, to a jazz club after hours, along the ancient stones of the Appian Way. It took me up into the Abruzzii mountains whose medieval villages hid ageless secrets. And most of all, it told me a heart warming story of an American's discovery of his family's past.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Answers my family couldn't give me, July 27, 2000

By 

Anthony Pierulla (San antonio, texas USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dances with Luigi: A Grandson's Determined Quest to Comprehend Italy and the Italians (Hardcover)

If you are a second, third, or even fourth generation Southern Italian get your hands on this book. Mr. Paolcelli has done what I have wanted to do for the better part of my life, find out what made someone the way is and why he feels about family the way he does. For me Dances with Luigi grabbed my heart and soul and pulled tears from my eyes. Admittedly I have only read the first 100 pages but pages 78-86 were worth the price of a three hour course in Italian history. Again I only got the book 24 hours ago. If you enjoyed Talese's, Unto the Sons then you will for sure get a big time buzz from this work. I wish I could get in touch with the author and extend my heart felt thanks for writing this book. [e-mail]

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A pleasure., August 14, 2000

By 

"maulhardt" (San Francisco, California USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dances with Luigi: A Grandson's Determined Quest to Comprehend Italy and the Italians (Hardcover)

I've been doing the same type of work to trace my mother's family, and was encouraged and delighted by Mr. Paolicelli's story--it's amazing how many similarities there are in our experiences.

But I was disappointed in the end of the adventure, and the drama of the narrative: the book draws you into the relationship the author has with Luigi (it's all in the title!), and he's forgotten in the end. What was it like to leave Italy? Is he still in touch with Luigi, Sebash, etc.?

Also, I was surprised at several editorial inconsistencies and incidents of sloppiness in the book. For example, at one point the narrator translates roman numerals for us, but the numerals do not add up to "1801" as way he reveals. Several sentences were unclear and confusing, and a better editor wouldn't have let this happen.