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La Bella Figura: A Field Guide to the Italian Mind Hardcover – August 15, 2006

by Beppe Severgnini (Author)

65 customer reviews

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You won’t need luggage for this hypothetical and hilarious trip into the hearts and minds of Beppe Severgnini’s fellow Italians. In fact, Beppe would prefer if you left behind the baggage his crafty and elegant countrymen have smuggled into your subconscious. To get to his Italia, you’ll need to forget about your idealized notions of Italy. Although La Bella Figura will take you to legendary cities and scenic regions, your real destinations are the places where Italians are at their best, worst, and most authentic:

The highway: in America, a red light has only one possible interpretation—Stop! An Italian red light doesn’t warn or order you as much as provide an invitation for reflection.

The airport: where Italians prove that one of their virtues (an appreciation for beauty) is really a vice. Who cares if the beautiful girls hawking cell phones in airport kiosks stick you with an outdated model? That’s the price of gazing upon perfection.

The small town: which demonstrates the Italian genius for pleasant living: “a congenial barber . . . a well-stocked newsstand . . . professionally made coffee and a proper pizza; bell towers we can recognize in the distance, and people with a kind word and a smile for everyone.”

The chaos of the roads, the anarchy of the office, the theatrical spirit of the hypermarkets, and garrulous train journeys; the sensory reassurance of a church and the importance of the beach; the solitude of the soccer stadium and the crowded Italian bedroom; the vertical fixations of the apartment building and the horizontal democracy of the eat-in kitchen. As you venture to these and many other locations rooted in the Italian psyche, you realize that Beppe has become your Dante and shown you a country that “has too much style to be hell” but is “too disorderly to be heaven.”

Ten days, thirty places. From north to south. From food to politics. From saintliness to sexuality. This ironic, methodical, and sentimental examination will help you understand why Italy—as Beppe says—“can have you fuming and then purring in the space of a hundred meters or ten minutes.”

La Bella Figura: A Field Guide to the Italian Mind

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Product Details

Hardcover: 217 pages
Publisher: Broadway (August 15, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0767914392
ISBN-13: 978-0767914390
Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 0.9 x 8.8 inches
Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (65 customer reviews)
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #754,002 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1108 in Books > Travel > Europe > Italy > General
- #1244 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Social Sciences > Customs & Traditions

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Customer Reviews

3.4 out of 5 stars

5 star		29%
4 star		31%
3 star		14%
2 star		8%
1 star		18%

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Top Customer Reviews

Divertente, ma un po noioso....

By Jamie Thome on December 7, 2006

Format: Hardcover

I read this book after I heard Beppe Severgnini speak about it in Chicago; while reading, I realized that he'd already mentioned the best things in the book during his talk. The book was interesting, and funny, and I wish that I had read it prior to a trip to Italy, but I was slightly disappointed that there wasn't more to it. He's a very funny man, however, and if you're at all familiar with (or interested in) the ways of the Italians, you'll get a kick out of it.

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This was great in Italian - Don't miss it in English

By Hank n Tennessee on March 28, 2006

Format: Hardcover

I read the Italian language version (La Testa Degli Italiani)before my family's trip to Italy last summer (my family is Italo-American). Severgnini was European Journalist of the Year last year, writes a wonderful daily letters column in Corriere della Sera entitled "Italians" which is available on- line at [...] and has written other delightful books about his travels in America, England and Germany. There is no better person to explain, with sharp insight and great good humor, the marvelous complexities and contradictions of this amazing country. With its shining successes, its glaring faults, and its self critical population, few countries are so delightful and so maddening at the same time. Read and enjoy. Then go to Italy and see for yourself! You'll never regret the journey.

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Awkward format but an incisive and comprehensive dissection of Italians

By Andy Orrock VINE VOICE on September 5, 2006

Format: Hardcover

While dining in a favorite restaurant recently, I congratulated the Italian proprietor on his country's recent well-deserved World Cup triumph. "Yeah," he replied, shaking his head, "it was just too easy...I'm really not sure what they can do in 2010 because it's just too easy for us now." I scanned his face for any hint of his pulling my leg (are we talking about the same tournament here?). There was none.

That's the type of Italian bravado and confidence that Beppe Severgnini conveys to his readers in "La Bella Figura." [Typical passage: "We are the consummate professionals of culinary consumption...The French know what they're talking about, but they're sliding into affectation...Note that I'm talking about all Italians...There is a spontaneous gustatory proficiency that cuts across social classes, age groups, income brackets, education and geographical boundaries."]

Now, there are some good things in here, as the other reviewers here can readily attest to. My lukewarm review stems from the fact that the book's awkward format never grabbed me. Severgnini's schtick here is that he's taking us (figuratively) on a ten-day tour so we get lines like "that's the ocean there in front of you...that sand you see was the city council's idea.' Cute idea, but it got old and grating very quickly.

However, if you can get past the clunky presentation, the Italophile in you will be rewarded with an incisive and comprehensive dissection of the national character.

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I normally don't bother...

By L. Barclift on November 25, 2009

Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase

I normally don't take the time to write reviews, but I felt I needed to do so this one time. My wife and I have made several visits to Italy. We rent a car and travel on our own. What great experiences we have had. I do not hold myself out as an expert on the subject of Italy, but I am enthusiastic. After reading Bepe Severgninni's musing on the Italian character, I thought it would make a perfect gift for a like minded friend. Upon seeing a number of negative reviews on this website, I thought I would post my five stars and write this comment. This book is not a travel log, it is not a reference book. But, if you have a fascination with Italy and its complexities and contradictions La Bella Figura makes for a most pleasant read.

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take life lighter

By Travelguru on April 15, 2011

Format: Paperback Verified Purchase

I read some of the reviews of this book and thought I might not like it. Wrong! As a tour director who works in Italy, I found this book to be hilarious, occasionally redundant (as we all are sometimes) but very informative and helpful for an insight into why things are the way they are in Italy. Interspersed are facts and figures I found very helpful. In short, I loved it, and used lots of it in my commentary. I suppose everything is subjective as to what we look for in books, but this one provided what I was looking for in a light vein that didn't take itself too seriously.

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It's a super funny and interesting take on Italian culture

By Michelle on December 22, 2015

Format: Paperback Verified Purchase

Bought this book as a requirement for an Italian culture class and was pleasantly surprised! It's a super funny and interesting take on Italian culture. I loved the voice of the narrator whose writing is extremely engaging. Will definitely reread when I finally get to take a trip to Italy!

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a good impression

By Amazon Customer on November 22, 2014

Format: Kindle Edition Verified Purchase

It's all about making a good impression, or "la Bella figura." The author entertains talking about contradictory and unpredictable Italians. That's why I like Italy, it's full of surprises, as is this book.

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I lived in Italy and thought this was such an appropriate and funny look at the real workings of different aspects of ...

By Notsabrina on October 27, 2014

Format: Paperback Verified Purchase

Hilarious! I lived in Italy and thought this was such an appropriate and funny look at the real workings of different aspects of Italian culture. Laughed a lot. I recommend this to my students who are going to study abroad in Italy.