A few weeks ago I realised something pretty important, I'd lost my love for books and reading in general. As a child I would sit down with a good book and I'd have read it within a few days, now I read very little, if I do it's only on a plane or a train and honestly I miss being curled up with a good book and getting lost in a story. I picked up this book again the other day and re read it, remembering how much I'd loved it the first time round. Here is why it's such a good book and why you should read it too:
When In Rome Book Review
Orion Books £7.99
I remember the first time I came across this book on a scroll through my kindle recommendations, I read the synopsis and thought it looked like a really interesting premise, It was the kind of story I wanted to read from a book and not off a screen, I have absolutely no logic behind that choice other than I love actual books.
I'm not about to start a debate on why books are better than kindles, because I don't think they are. The fact is you have to battle with the pages, especially if you read in bed it will probably fall on your face and then you still have to find a light source. Kindles don't do that, there's no awkward page turning, you don't even need to use both hands and they emit their own light. They're great for holidays and travelling and you have literally thousands of books at your fingertips. This is starting to sound like an advert isn't it? It's not; like I said, there is no logic. I just really like books.
It's 1950's Rome, at the heart of the city Serafina lives with her mother and sisters in a cramped apartment in the city. She and her sisters spend their days singing at the local piazza busking for spare change. Mario Lanza, the famous American Tenor causes a stir when he comes to the city Serafina is given the chance of a lifetime, a perfect story of love, food and music and passion.One of the reasons I loved this books so much was the originality of the storyline, once I started reading I couldn't put it down. The book is based around the real life of the American Hollywood star Mario Lanza, a popular actor and singer during his short career in the late 1940's and the early 50's. Serafina's perspective on life changes when she lands a job as the assistant to Lanza's Wife, Betty. When she has to choose the life she has always dreamed of, and leave her old one behind, the decisions isn't as easy as she'd hoped. Although the story is told from Serafina's view the story of Lanza and his family is woven throughout the book, I'll be honest and say I found this more interesting than that of Serafina's story and felt as though her's became more of a secondary story in the book. Even if you've never heard of Mario Lanza, you'll be researching him after reading this book. A brilliant story of love, passion music and food set in one of the most exciting cities in the world.
