Rococo: A Novel (Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: church renovation, Mary Kate, Father Porp, New Jersey (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Playing more than a dozen reoccurring characters living in the small Italian-American town of Our Lady of Fatima, N.J., Cantone gives a wildly entertaining tour de force performance that is both hilarious and moving. Fresh from his Tony Award–winning one-man show, Laugh Whore, Cantone performs with cyclone energy and his wickedly arch comedic timing is rapier sharp. The biggest surprise is his lightning-fast ability to become different characters, keep them vocally consistent and make them funny but not ridiculous. Trigiani's novel is less plot-driven than full of outrageous and wonderful characters trying to untangle family ties. Bartolomeo di Crespi (aka "B") is an interior designer and bachelor of a certain age who is hired to renovate the local church when he's not dealing with his sister (who's having an affair with her ex-husband), his platonic fiancé, a sultry international designer (who sounds like Lauren Bacall) and a hunky artist brought onto the project. This totally satisfying experience will make listeners happy to learn that it's the first in a planned trilogy. A q&a with Trigiani at the end of disk four is a delightful bonus.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

From Booklist

With what level of seriousness can any reader accept a main character, Bartolomeo di Crespi, head of the House of Beauty, who's positioned as the town decorator for Our Lady of Fatima in New Jersey? On the other hand, it is truly a rollicking read, from Bart's mission/vision to redo the local church to his discovery of a genuine Modigliani statue that saves the job's finance after a wealthy local donor pulls the financial plug. The comic prose itself deserves applause; think of a cat described as an "oversized fuzzy slipper with eyes." Or Bart's former fiancee, Capri Mandelbaum, as a "40 year old green banana." All in good fun by the author of Lucia, Lucia (2003) and The Queen of the Big Time (2005). Barbara Jacobs
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (April 25, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 081296781X
• ISBN-13: 978-0812967814
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (62 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #123,351 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars If it's not baroque, don't fix it, June 27, 2006

By	Carolyn Agosta (Sherrill's Ford, NC USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Rococo: A Novel (Hardcover)

Adriana Trigiani's "Rococo" does not evoke the 1970 I knew, but then I lived in split-level midwest suburbia, not moneyed New Jersey, and I was young (a mere babe, an infant. Practically in utero.) However, it certainly does evoke the Italian families I knew, and have had the privilege to join.

I was a bit misled by the front cover art, thinking the main character would be a woman and even a bit deceived by B's voice, so that it was a bit of a jolt to realize he was a man. Sometimes the reference to 70's items and decorations didn't jive for me, so that the setting did not drag me back to any 1970 moments. It was the characters and their situations that made me enjoy the book.

"Rococo" is the perfect title for this swirling, curlicued, emotionally-charged, slightly frou-frou novel. I really got involved reading about B's family and their dramatic, overblown, always-with-food-available-plus-recipes lives. I got a kick out of some of the names (Toot, Two, Aunt Mary Mix-up) because I know how Italians are - in any family, 14 of them share the same name, so it becomes "Aunt Mary's Vito" or "Little Vito" or "Vito-with-the-house-in-Anaheim".

I just wish I coulda seen the finished church.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Renewal and redemption, June 27, 2005

By	Karen Potts (Lake Jackson, Texas) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Rococo: A Novel (Hardcover)

Bartolomeo di Crespi, erstwhile bachelor, interior decorator, and benevolent uncle has always wanted to renovate Our Lady Of Fatima, the church he has attended all his life. He finally gets the opportunity and in the process he learns a lot about himself, life, and family expectations. Adriana Trigiani is one of my favorite authors and in this book she creates another madcap, loving, eccentric Italian family who provide the background for the story. Barolomeo's sister Toot is a particularly memorable character, but the reader will also love and laugh along with many of the other characters. This is a rolicking, funny, feel-good read which I heartily recommend!

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE ELABORATE ROCOCO, June 21, 2005

By	Rosalie Ciardullo (PHOENIX, AZ.) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Rococo: A Novel (Hardcover)

This story is elaborate in every way! The characters are each elaborate in their own way, the goings-on in their lives are elaborate, the decor created by Bartolomeo di Crespi, the main
character, is elaborate.

In my opinion it has it all! Flamboyancy runs rampant, from Toot's (Bartolomeo's older sister) clothing to her persona which is, shall we say, unintendedly funny; from Aurelia's wealth
to her domineering ways; from Bartolomeo's use of color and style in decorating Our Lady of Fatima, New Jersey's homes to restoring and redecorating it's church.

Undoubtedly, you will be educated about furnishings and fabrics, and possibly about food.

Ms. Trigiani incorporates different ethnicities, sexual orientations, and behaviors to make this book a conglomeration of very interesting and enjoyable reading. By the time you complete this novel you, too, will be elaborate in your praise of Trigiani's latest, ROCOCO.