Download At Least You're in Tuscany Jennifer Criswell 9780982102374 Books
Download As PDF : At Least You're in Tuscany Jennifer Criswell 9780982102374 Books
When dream meets reality. . .
Endless fields of flame-like poppies. Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. The sweet, rhythmic chime of church bells.
Months upon months of unemployment? Struggling to communicate with locals? Duvets frozen on the clothesline?
Jennifer Criswell's move from New York City to Tuscany was not supposed to go like this. She had envisioned lazy mornings sipping espresso while penning a best-selling novel and jovial group dinners, just like in the movies and books about expatriate life in Italy.
Then she met reality no work, constant struggles with Italian bureaucracy to claim citizenship through her ancestors, and perhaps worst of all, becoming the talk of the town after her torrid affair with a local fruit vendor.
At Least You're in Tuscany is the intimate, honest, and often hilarious tale of Jennifer's first year in Montepulciano. During that time, Jennifer's internal optimist was forced to work overtime, reminding her that if she were going to be homeless, lonely, and broke, at least she would be all those things--in Tuscany.
Through all her small-town bumblings, though, Jennifer's mantra, along with a healthy dose of enthusiasm and willingness to learn about Italian culture, helped her not only build a new, rewarding life in Italy but also find herself along the way.
Download At Least You're in Tuscany Jennifer Criswell 9780982102374 Books
"One of my favorite genre of books is non-fictional travel. A good writer can take you with them to experience a place, culture, the food, and the people. Jennifer Criswell's book is an amazing story that chronicles her adventure in transitioning from a lawyer in the United States to living a new life in the heart of Tuscany in the small and historical hilltop town of Montepulciano. She is honest and open regarding her experiences such that the reader feels like a friend. Her style of writing is excellent for conveying what life is really like, the incredible beauty of the land, the food and wine, and the challenges of a new language. My wife and I were so inspired by her story, we have decided to take a two week vacation to Montepulciano to attend the Italian language school there and experience a tiny part of the l'avventura she has written about. I would highly recommend this book. There are few books I enjoy re-reading but this is definitely one."
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At Least You're in Tuscany Jennifer Criswell 9780982102374 Books Reviews :
At Least You're in Tuscany Jennifer Criswell 9780982102374 Books Reviews
- "As the barista set my espresso down, he smiled, so I decided it might be appropriate to try out one of my practiced phrases.
'Mi sono appena trasferita a Montepulciano.' I've just moved to Montepulciano, I smiled, resisting the urge to apologize for my horrible Italian.
'Perche?' he asked, looking genuinely puzzled. I'd fielded this question a lot in February when I'd said I was moving here. Locals seemed bewildered that anyone would want to come and live in their town.
'Sono scrittrice.' I told him. I'm a writer. Then I added, 'Cercavo pace.' I was looking for peace. This didn't begin to express all the reasons why I loved Italy, but it was all I could manage. I would have liked to explain that I was supposed to be here, but I didn't know exactly how to say that, which is just as well because I probably seemed kooky enough already.
'Ma per sempre?' he insisted.
Yes, I told him, I was planning to be here forever. He looked at me speculatively, then extended his hand to welcome me and introduce himself 'Benvenuta! Sono Stefano.'"
This is an example of how Jennifer Criswell writes. She's honest, sincere, and very down to earth. Her tale of being an ex-pat isn't like those others where someone with a lot of money buys an old farm house to renovate and moans and groans about carpenters not showing up, or water heaters not heating the water, or being unable to get over the usual bureaucratic pitfalls they inevitably have. No. Jenny, as the locals come to call her, tells the reader just what it's like to hunt for an affordable apartment to rent, wait for most of her belongings to be mailed from New York City to Montepulciano, run frighteningly low on funds, worry about getting a job (any job), and has to eat canned tuna every day in order to survive.
Through it all, she manages to stay mostly lighthearted and optimistic. Jenny does find comfort in her best friend which happens to be her Weimaraner Cindy. Both girl and dog manage to win the hearts of Italians and other ex-pats alike. Jenny also is a pretty decent cook and enjoys baking brownies and other tasty treats for her new found friends.
I enjoyed this book and think others here looking for something that's light and entertaining will too. O...Jenny writes a blog with more of her interesting adventures in and thoughts about living in Italy. Look her up. 4 Stars - I enjoyed this book. It wasn't my favorite, but it was "real". Its a story of someone without buckets of money to move on whim. This woman took time and effort to plan this move out, and stuck it out with little financial help until things worked out with the slow moving Italian government process.. Much more relatable to my world than the wealthy American moves to Europe crowd, who then all write books. Not much about their lives connects with mine. Jennifer actually struggled to fulfill her dream, with many helps and hindrances along the way. I actually wondered when I got to the end, how things worked out for her and her dog. I have not wondered at all about the others. Its good to know you CAN do it without tons of money, and buying and renovating .
- One of my favorite genre of books is non-fictional travel. A good writer can take you with them to experience a place, culture, the food, and the people. Jennifer Criswell's book is an amazing story that chronicles her adventure in transitioning from a lawyer in the United States to living a new life in the heart of Tuscany in the small and historical hilltop town of Montepulciano. She is honest and open regarding her experiences such that the reader feels like a friend. Her style of writing is excellent for conveying what life is really like, the incredible beauty of the land, the food and wine, and the challenges of a new language. My wife and I were so inspired by her story, we have decided to take a two week vacation to Montepulciano to attend the Italian language school there and experience a tiny part of the l'avventura she has written about. I would highly recommend this book. There are few books I enjoy re-reading but this is definitely one.
- This was such an enjoyable book and easy to read. I felt like I was sitting with a girlfriend chatting over a bottle of Pinot Grigio and hearing about her recent move to Italy.
Anyone who visits Italy probably has at the very least a fleeting thought of packing up and moving there. This is a story of someone who did just that-packed up and set down roots in a foreign country. But instead of the oh so overdone fairy tale of a young woman who moves to Italy, renovates a Tuscan villa, falls in love and lives happily ever after, this book is a realistic account of what it takes to pack up and move to somewhere where you don't know anyone or even speak the language. How do you learn the language? What do you do for work when your funds get crucially low? How do you navigate the long and convoluted process of gaining citizenship? We don't think about the day to day when we're daydreaming! This book, however, finds complete entertainment in the minutiae of daily life.
I found this book to be very well written and not overdone in any way. It was peppered with just enough italian words, the stories didn't seem over embellished, and character development was well done. I enjoyed it very much and I'm looking forward to the sequal...or at least another book by this adventurous author. - Although I have read several "moving to a foreign place and starting over" type stories, I thoroughly enjoyed this story and felt very engaged by the author's determination to become a legal resident of the Tuscany region of Italy. Not being able to do so would effectively mean that she would not be able to financially support herself for very long and would ultimately have to abandon her dream of living and writing in Italy. Along the way the book's main character had a series of ups and downs including making some very public mistakes and having some very disappointing experiences with people she had hoped would become friends. I consistently found myself looking forward to reading daily about what would happen next. Certainly a great read for anyone who has ever imagined themselves having an adventure of this type.
