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18th out of 165 books
—
45 voters
Italian Education
by
Tim Parks
Tim Parks' first bestseller, "Italian Neighbors," chronicled his initiation into Italian society and cultural life. Reviewers everywhere hailed it as a bravissimo performance. Now he turns to his children -- born and bred in Italy -- and their milieu in a small village near Verona. With the splendid eye for detail, character, and intrigue that has brought him acclaim as a...more
Paperback, 352 pages
Published
September 1st 1996
by Harper Perennial
(first published 1995)
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This book was an interesting and enjoyable read, although there is an undertone of smug criticism of Italy and Italians throughout the book-- a bit odd since the author is married to an Italian and has lived in Italy for a decade or two. I guess he's a bit like a teenage boy with a big crush that he can't quite seem to admit to, so he criticizes his beloved instead. At any rate, if you are interested in reading a reasonable and well-written (if a little self-indulgent) account of what it is like...more
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I thoroughly enjoyed this book, but will say two things...I had already read the author's previous book, Italian Neighbours..in which he and his italian wife buy a flat in a village, and come up against/ make friends with a cast of characters who I instantly I fell in love with. And right at the beginning of this book he talks about childhood experiences of visiting the seaside in Blackpool, which happens to be my home town; so as far as I am concerned Tim Parks can do no wrong...!
In this volume...more
In this volume...more
Even better than the first one. I think Parks hits it spot on when it comes to the Italian parenting style. Some really really funny parts and I love reading anything about Italian families. That being said, there were several chapters I didn't care for. It was too long and it just needed to be edited more carefully. I also found it rather depressing! Even though Parks wanted his 2 kids (growing up in Italy) to understand and participate in Italian culture, it seemed to me that all his ideas on...more
I read this in lieu of Italian Neighbors (a book club pick), which my library does not have. Inexpicably, they did have this book, which is the sequel.
I expected a travelogue, along the lines of "A Year in Provence". This book was much better. It is the 7 year story of an Englishman and his Italian wife raising their children in Italy. It involves the education of Tim Parks in all ways Italian, as well as the education of his two children, Michele and Sofi. It was like being a fly on the wall o...more
I expected a travelogue, along the lines of "A Year in Provence". This book was much better. It is the 7 year story of an Englishman and his Italian wife raising their children in Italy. It involves the education of Tim Parks in all ways Italian, as well as the education of his two children, Michele and Sofi. It was like being a fly on the wall o...more
This is the second book on life in Italy by Parks and explores the daunting task of raising children in Italy, from an Englishman's transplanted perspective. Again, he exhibits wit and uncanny observations, I just didn't identify as much with this plotline as much as his other book. It is still an interesting look into The Way Things Work sometimes in Italy, with regards to child-rearing and all the things that go along with that.
Net als Italiaanse buren een must-read als je naar Italie gaat. Heel veel herkenbare kleine dingen die je vakantie net wat leuker maken... de kokosnootverkoper op het strand met z'n toeter en z'n 'coco-coco!', dat je na het eten zeker een uur het water niet in mag omdat je dan zeker zal verdrinken, om nog maar te zwijgen van zwemmen bij een vochtige dag... je zult er ziek van worden! Grappig volk die italianen...
A British expat reflects on the experience of raising two children in Italy. Great for those who want to read and reflect on the inherent cultural differences taught from birth. Wry and funny a la Peter Mayle (A Year in Provence). Parks is an excellent writer and storyteller (the scene where he takes his son fishing is my favorite).
This is the first book I read by Tim Parks and got me hooked on him, both for his non-fiction about life in Italy, and his novels, which are well-crafted, at times quirky, adult-themed (although not graphic). One of the best. He also translates Italian authors's works into English, e.g. Italo Calvino.
One of my favorite writers on life in Italy, Parks offers more insight and perspective than the run-of-the-mill travelogue written by an overzealous, sentimental fish out of water who can only perceive the culture from a tourist's arm's length while drunk on Chianti and steeped in olive oil and cliche.
Aug 10, 2008
Jenny
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
people interested in education, parents, people interested in Italy
Shelves:
read-in-2008
I am always fascinated to learn about education in other countries, and this book goes one step further by talking not only about what's intentionally taught in Italian schools, but what's unintentionally taught through the culture.
This was a good read, long, but Tim Parks is a captivating story teller. This book is for adult audiences. Nothing too awful, but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone under 16 or so. There was a bit of swearing and the attitudes were pretty lenient towards under-age drin...more
This was a good read, long, but Tim Parks is a captivating story teller. This book is for adult audiences. Nothing too awful, but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone under 16 or so. There was a bit of swearing and the attitudes were pretty lenient towards under-age drin...more
I enjoyed this book even more than "Italian Neighors" by the same author. English born Parks lives near Verona, has an Italian wife and his children are growing up Italian, albeit bi-lingual. His affection for the country and people out-weigh any vestige of homesickness for England. I will be looking for more non-fiction by this author.
I Love, Love, Love, Love, Love this book! I enjoy the way the author describes the people he encounters and the culture he experiences! I catch myself laughing out loud in recognition of a situation or understanding of a particular situation in a far away land, or just at the situation itself.
Tim Parks, otherwise known as Meester Teem, takes the reader on the journey of raising children in Italy, asks of himself "when do children become Italian" while evaluating the socialization of his own chil...more
Tim Parks, otherwise known as Meester Teem, takes the reader on the journey of raising children in Italy, asks of himself "when do children become Italian" while evaluating the socialization of his own chil...more
What can I say? I LOVE Italy, and Tim Parks puts me in the driver seat as a transplanted local in modern Italian society.
A good introduction to the italian cultures and its people's habit (bad and good). An easy read and funny too..
3.5 stars. I enjoy travel reading. A lot. This was a good read. I won't recommend to others really. I enjoy travel reading a lot. I think I said that.
An accurate, entertaining and, at the same time profound book. I greatly recommend it.
Another great book about living in Italy and what it is to be Italian.
Honest...none of the smugness of a number of expat "travel writers".
hard going, droll and lacklustre writing
Great insight into Italian life. Very funny
I liked his second memoir better than his first. His take on raising his children is Italy and the distinct differences between an Italian upbringing and his own English upbringing are clear and poignant. Plus he is funny.
Basically boring.
Nonfiction.
May 24, 2012
Liz
added it
Interesting book about a Brit married to an Italian woman in a small town in Italy and the different views of how to raise childre.
Okay, but not as good as his first memoir, Italian Neighbors. This book focuses around the raising of his 2 children in Italy, rather than the overall culture and experience of Italy that he covers in the previous book. Perhaps I wasn't as into this book because:
1 - I am not really interested in ever having kids. And this book kind of emphasized that interest.
2 - The descriptions of raising your children "the Italian way" seems to just result in them being incredibly spoiled brats.
1 - I am not really interested in ever having kids. And this book kind of emphasized that interest.
2 - The descriptions of raising your children "the Italian way" seems to just result in them being incredibly spoiled brats.
Wasn't a big fan of this book. Yes it had its good points but for the most part it was boring.
Jul 30, 2007
Sabrina Moser
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Expats Anywhere in Southern Europe
Shelves:
justfinished
Tim Parks is a hilarious writer and this book is no exception. A tale of his two small children growing up near Verona, Park's memoirs of an Anglo Saxon Dad at loose in Italy are at once funny and profound. Writing with incurable wit of family life, summer vacations, school systems, and fishing expeditions, Parks discovers through the adventures of his children the outrageous differences between life in his native England and his chosen Italy.
Oct 26, 2008
Deb
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
fans of travel, Italy and people with families
A fun story about an Englishman who is married to an Italian, raising their kids in Italy. This was an entertaining comparison of what it's like to raise your family in a country different than your own and what general family life might be like in Italy. It made me chuckle. I did feel, though, that towards the end it got a little long. Overall, a fun read.
A somewhat cynical follow-up to the wonderful Italian Neighbors, this loosely linked series of essays on living as a foreigner in Italian society has its moments, but too much of the writing and insight seems forced and trite. I'm a Tim Parks fan, and I'm glad I read it, but your mileage may vary.
Feb 17, 2007
Leah
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
anyone interested in travel books as well as italy- very funny too
Shelves:
non-fiction-travel
I love Tim Parks. He's an English ex-pat that marries an Italian woman from Verona. His witty observations on every day life in Italy are really entertaining to read. You can all thank him for Daniel and myself not moving to Italy because he takes all the mystery out of living in that country!!
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Born in Manchester in 1954, Tim Parks grew up in London and studied at Cambridge and Harvard. In 1981 he moved to Italy where he has lived ever since. He has written eleven novels including Europa, Destiny, Cleaver and, most recently, Dreams of Rivers and Seas, as well as three non-fiction accounts of life in northern Italy (most recently A Season with Verona), a collection of 'narrative' essays,...more
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