Pezzelli, Peter. Italian Lessons. Kensington. Oct. 2007. c.352p. ISBN 978-0-7582-2050-9. Trade Paperback. $14.00. F
Italian native Giancarlo Rosa, a professor of music at Rhode Island College, has been living in self-imposed exile for 30 years. A bachelor weighed down by his past, he can no longer write music or perform in public. When a college grad approaches him for summer Italian lessons, the reluctant professor recognizes and is won over by the student's motive: lovestruck Carter Quinn wants to learn the language to track down an Italian girl he met briefly. Carter proves to be an excellent student and by summer’s end finds himself in Italy, where, as part of his quest, he has agreed to do a favor for his teacher. What follows, however, will turn both his and the professor’s world upside down. Novelist Pezzelli (Francesca’s Kitchen; Home to Italy) tells an engaging story that is as leisurely paced and satisfying as a fine Italian meal. Readers will enjoy the relationship that develops between student and teacher and savor the transformations of dreams and disappointments. Recommended for all popular fiction collections.