A Garden in Lucca: Finding Paradise in Tuscany [Hardcover]

Paul Gervais (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 15, 2000

This lyrical portrait of an antique Italian villa with its charming caretaker, olive groves, and vineyards is filled with hilarious garden misadventures, witty sketches of eccentric fellow gardeners, and sensuous studies of Tuscan daily life. Entertaining for its garden side trips, its generous information about Mediterranean plants, Italian garden history and lore, A Garden in Lucca is, at its heart, a compelling journey of self-discovery that shares with readers the joys and challenges of creating a personal paradise on earth.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In 1982, Gervais (Extraordinary People) and his companion moved from California to the Italian province of Tuscany. The villa they bought in the small town of Massa Macinaia, just outside of Lucca, included a vineyard, an olive grove and a half-abandoned garden. Gervais's pensive memoir describes how he transformed this garden into his own paradise. Because he had no previous gardening experience, his first experiments were less than successful--a timid arrangement of box balls, uninspired rows of red salvia, beds of herbs that deteriorated into a parterre of alpine strawberries. Only after several years and the shock of nearly losing the villa because of financial difficulties does Gervais begin to take the garden renovation seriously. He scours books for inspiration, studies garden history and visits showplace gardens. Then, with the aid of handmade terra-cotta pots, hedges and a grotto, he creates a garden that expresses his personality as well as "the spirit of the spot." Gervais describes poetically the thought process that enabled him to create this garden but loses focus when he digresses into vignettes about other aspects of his life in Italy--an eccentric Italian caretaker, New Yorkers who rent a cottage on his property, memorable meals in restaurants. Line drawings not seen by PW. (Mar.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Novelist Gervais (Extraordinary People) has lived in Italy for the past 18 years. Here, with line drawings, he recounts his experiences, as a novice gardener, of creating an acclaimed garden out of the overgrown grounds of a Renaissance Tuscan hunting lodge. There are delightful sketches of eccentric fellow gardeners, accounts of his relationship with the caretaker who came as part of the deal, and a suspenseful description of his attempt, at one point, to sell the property. We read about the tribulations caused by a peacock Gervais received as a gift and his purchase of large, hand-crafted clay pots that were the last of a set made at a pottery that was closing down. (Prince Charles bought the rest.) Gervais is a talented writer, and his memoir makes for entertaining and easy reading. Fans of Frances Mayes's Under the Tuscan Sun will also enjoy. For gardening and travel collections.
-Carol Cubberley, Univ. of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion (March 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786865210
• ISBN-13: 978-0786865215
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #464,387 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Like meeting a warm and friendly neighbor, March 21, 2000

By 

Gloria (Maryland, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Garden in Lucca: Finding Paradise in Tuscany (Hardcover)

I really loved this book. A nice variation on the 'foreigners move to exotic locale and meet charming locals' theme. It's much more than that, too. I nearly cried when I thought Paul and Gil were going thru with the sale......whew! Never thought I'd read a garden book, but as a fan of Tuscany, I had to pick this one up. Glad I did.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Garden of Delights, June 7, 2000

By 

A Reader (Florence, Italy) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Garden in Lucca: Finding Paradise in Tuscany (Hardcover)

Paul Gervais captures the delights as well as the challenges of living in Italy -- and does so with splendidly engaging prose. Gervais has an exceptional talent for recalling conversations, as readers of his first book 'Exceptional People' will agree. My wife and I both loved this book, and we knew nothing before about gardens!

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A book for good ideas and a good feeling., August 17, 2000

By 

Marco Dezi (Milano, Italy) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Garden in Lucca: Finding Paradise in Tuscany (Hardcover)

Paul Gervais has written a wonderful book. A book for everyone. Gardening lovers, gardeners, neophytes, everyone including those who have always been lazy with their garden. The story is just amazing. The extremely witty way of telling it and the incredible setting keep the reader glued to the book with a funny feeling. You actually realise you want to do the same thing Paul has done. You want to create your own garden, improve your little terrace or add a flower-bed to your plain-looking lawn. You will fall in love with the countryside. The author looks at Italy with an eye full of reverence, passion and excitement and he never fails to convey the humble feeling with which he approaches his work in his gardens. You'll love the book. Professionals will read it and smile and recognise some of the struggles to obtain what they wanted, people will learn something new. All will enjoy the story that lies behind the wonderful house and its gardens. It's the right book to dream with, find new ideas and have a great feeling.