Extra Virgin: A Young Woman Discovers the Italian Riviera, Where Every Month Is Enchanted

Author describes her experience in a humorous and engaging manner

Annie Hawes writes in a slow, laid-back style that is evocative of the Ligurian lifestyle that she lives. It took me a while to settle down and read this book, but when I did, I found myself escaping to the author's descriptions of pruning olive trees, dancing at village fiestas, and her encounters with eccentric locals. I'll definitely read this again.

This book was one of those novels that makes you wish you were: A) courageous enough to drop everything and move to a foreign country, B) arrogant enough to think that, just maybe, you'll manage to learn all of the ancient farming techniques that have been passed down for generations, and C) intelligent enought to enjoy every minute of the work-to-the-bone lifestyle you've just chosen. That being said, I am none of these things, yet. Reading this book takes that pressure off, though, and lets you into a world you may never experience otherwise. This isn't the glamourous riviera of the movies, and this isn't an over-glorified triumph of the earth either, its just a lovely novel that you will want to devour as if it were a fresh piece of foccacia dripping with... of course... ligurian olive oil.

If you're a fan of Peter Mayle, Frances Mayes, and Chris Stewart, add Annie Hawes to your reading list. At first skeptical about the subject ("Not ANOTHER book about moving abroad and fixing up an old house in the country!"), I was immediately enchanted by Hawes's take on it. Her style is closer to Mayle than Mayes, mostly because of her wonderful British wit and turning of a phrase, so Italy is described in a different way; and her rendering of the rural landscape and its inhabitants match Stewart's in detail and affection. Even if you've read a lot of books on Italy and expats living in sunny Mediterranean climes, crack "Extra Virgin". You won't be disappointed!

Many have extolled the virtues of living in Italy, but few have done so with the insouciance and charm of Annie Hawes. Her story of years in a small Ligurian village is pure delight, as sunny as the oil yielded by dappled groves of olive trees lining the area. Now, an additional delight - the audio version of "Extra Virgin" as read by Miriam Margolyes. This gifted actress has worked with many of Hollywood's top directors, including Martin Scorsese in "The Age Of Innocence." She starred in her own television series, as well as gathering other television credits in various telefilms. Ms. Margolyes also conquered radio with her stunning rendition of a novel in which she played all members of the British Royal Family. Her reading of "Extra Virgin" is one more stellar accomplishment, allowing us to revisit the incomparably beautiful Italian Riviera whenever we wish.

Annie Hayes' view of Italy is far from the dappled, sensuous quality that has defined that "other" book about newcomers (and subsequent converts) to the beauty of Italy. Mayes' books excel in recalling the fabulous foods, landscapes, neighbors and gossamer days of Tuscany. Extra Virgin does that, too, but here's the difference -- Hayes' book goes deeper. She and her sister make mistakes. A lot of them. They don't instantly assimilate. The farmlands of Liguria are a far cry from the rolling and tourist-friendly hills of Tuscany, and the townsfolk, puzzled by these seemingly naive English girls, give them hard-knock lessons on the road to becoming honorary Italians. Whereas the Mayes series focus on the earthly pleasures of Italy, Extra Virgin is about character -- from the social protocol amid the local gentry at the village coffee shop to the laughs the sisters endure when they take another helping of antipasti or primi (shame on them!) Here is an outsider's honest, non-academic attempt to dissect the prejudices between Northern & Southern Italians -- to probe their grudges and prejudices -- and maybe even bend the rules a little (never too much!) Yet the reader never gets the sense that the Italians aren't warm to the author -- on the contrary, despite the occasional playful ridicule they are portrayed as kind, generous, resourceful, rugged, and hardworking. Hayes conveys the idea that Italy and Italian culture can be as foreign and oftentimes preposterous as our own culture appears to us. I'm half Italian and found this book very valuable in showing me the character of my forefathers (and my Italian-American mother!) It also serves as a terrific and necessary guidebook cloaked in a travelogue -- it has the fantasy aspect of moving to Italy, but it's done with a heaping dose of reality. I would recommend Extra Virgin to anyone intending to visit Italy -- to grasp what it means to be fully immersed in things Italian. Haye's recipe? Go with a healthy dose of respect, a lot of humor and keep on hand the odd dash of scepticism wherever necessary. That's Italian!