Vanilla Beans & Brodo: Real Life in the Hills of Tuscany

by Isabella Dusi

Isabella Dusi, a native Australian, settled in Montalcino, a beautiful mountain eyrie famous for its wine and the proud nature of its inhabitants. Her acceptance into this close-knit community was a hard-won thing and has inspired Isabella to capture the true spirit of Montalcino.  Vanilla Beans & Brodo  tells of the violent history of this medieval village, which has lefts its mark on the character traits of the Montalcinese, and also offers a rare insight into the anxiety, joy, fun, and pressure of daily life as it unfolds with the seasons. An evocative story of the rivalry between village neighborhoods, of football fever and festival pageantry, Isabella Dusi destroys the myth that Tuscan villages are tranquil places, and instead reveals a life infinitely rich and full of dramas.

Genres: Italy, Nonfiction, Travel, Memoir, History

456 pages, Paperback

First published March 26, 2001

Reviews

[Shauna · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought the book looked wonderful, had a lovely idea to it and being a fan of travel & italy ws excited to start this.
however, I am sad to say that for me the start was so dry, plunging into the history of the place with no mention of the couple who are choosing to live there that I ended up battling to page 50 & giving up. I wasnt after a history lesson on ancient italy, I wanted to hear about the couples experiences whilst getting settled in and it took too long to get started for me.

[Kristin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the setting of this memoir about an expatriot living in a Tuscan hilltown. Yet the writing was often awkward. I constantly felt like editing it to polish and improve the flow. There are great details and images, yet it's sometimes difficult to digest. I'm glad I read it though.

[Jill Rockwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have wandered through many small Tuscan towns and thought that there was not much activity. Dusi's book goes so much deeper than what the temporary visitor can imagine from looking, and gives glimpses about what makes up the network of a truly established historical place. I loved her silent musings about the people she came to know, and her transformation into a proud member of her quartiere. I feel that I have more insight into the culture, the family bonds, and the kinship that I am not witness to in Italy.

[Jan Amidon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it a lot, it's a very in-depth account of a year in the life of an Australian living in Montalcino, Italy. But not her first year, her fifth, giving her more familiarity and allowing her to share lots of history that took her four years to learn. Interesting that these years were the late 1990s, almost 30 years ago, yet her main premise is the timelessness of the town's culture, so I suspect most of what she experienced still occurs today. I wish the title included Brunello instead of Brodo, since the wine-making is much more discussed than the soup-making! 442 pages ran a little long, but I wouldn't mind re-reading it, especially if I can ever return to Montalcino, where 8 years ago I was one of the clueless tourists she felt sorry for, wandering around for half a day not knowing what I was seeing!

[Jaimini Mehta · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really well written book! The author brings this part of the world to life in your very hands while you read, but a look so protects (and communicates the protection) of this place.
She is humble in her reflections and awareness and clearly passionate about Montalcino and the people and history. I would highly recommend! :)

[Stuart · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well I really struggled with this. I thought I'd love it since my wife and I have visited this stunning area but I found her narrative far too detailed on just what each and every villager was doing each and every day - so gave up 1/3 the way through.
A first for me!
Nice book cover and the opening history explanation was fascinating and then it was all downhill from there on.....sadly......

[Kristopher Larsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one took me a long time to find the flow of and really get into. By by the end it turned into a charming portait of a small italian town and the characters within

[Phaedra Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved most of it, but some bits just far too detailed, eg archery tournaments, so I skipped a few pages here and there.

[Moira Swindlehurst · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful account of life in a Tuscan hill town, one fully gets the atmosphere of Montalcino and I would recomend La Grappolo Bleau for the food and more especially the Brunello

[Alayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 and a half stars. An interesting view of a year living in a Tuscan village, but it was too detailed and I felt it got bogged down in those details.

[Alison · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was a really nice companion to our trip to Tuscany. I wish I had finished it before we came home so we could have spent some more educated hours in Montalchino, but I'm glad for the time we spent because I can now get a more rounded picture from the book.
I do wish it was more recent or updated. Written in 2001, I asked myself how relevant this was to today. How much has changed over 15 years?

I did think Ms. Dusi sounded kind of arrogant at times. She talks so much about the ideals of being a native, but she, herself, is not a native. She is also an outsider. So when she looks down on a couple of American tourists, it caught me by surprise. These American tourists don't know what they don't know.

But this book did offer a unique and inside look at the village and gave me a new respect for the things we had seen.

[Nicole Hunter-Mostafa · Rating 3 out of 5]

it took me a long time to finish this book, but i'm glad i did. part of it was the structure of the book--it is arranged into seasons, which makes sense, but doesn't give the book much of a strong narrative. also, the writing is very heavy, has lots of run-on sentences, and often times comes across as a sort of literary painting--not much action or dialogue, but long, winding descriptions of scenery, which, although lovely, didn't entice me to plow through the book. even the amusing parts felt weighted down by the density of the writing. still, it really makes me want to visit montalcino someday.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice book. Different than the usual sort of "see how well we fit in and have become a real part of the village in no time flat" or the folks who want to give pictures of all the quaint folk they meet in their time.

I was a champion Archer in my youth and so the archery talk was quite fascinating. As was the history of the rivalry between Florence and Sienna and the unfolding of the beautiful Tuscan hills.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book more than Almost French: A New Life in Paris. It's about community in small town in Tuscany, Italy. We get to know the traditions. But it's also another book about English-speaking person moving to famous Tuscany, an Italian region for pilgrimiges of loads of Americans, British or Australians.

[Trenchologist · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely serves its purpose in conveying life in this village, with commentary of the people and their history & traditions. For me it borders on almost too rapturous and filled with unending succulent detail -- but then again that prevents it from being a dry recitation of fact. I carried this with me for a few weeks as my subway read and it worked as that quite handily: easy to get absorbed into, but easy to leave again at my stop.

[Rebekkila · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was great to read about a part of the world that I have never been to, but would love to visit. I wonder if the locals are as standoffish as she paints them to be. I loved the chapters that focused on the individual stories of some of the residents of Montalcino. I did feel though, that the history of the town could have been a bit more linear.

[M · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a nice summer read. At times, however, it seemed too detailed and a little difficult to keep track of the multitude of locals she discussed. I learned a little history about this hilltop medieval village in Italy, and especially about its wine production. Now I've got a hankering to try a bottle of Brunello di Montalcino.

[Kellie Schofield · Rating 1 out of 5]

To be honest I barely started this book - I got bored very quickly by so much description that seemed, maybe , just a little bit cheesy. I hate giving up on a book, but there you are, maybe I'll come back to this one and try again.

[Kate Rogers · Rating 1 out of 5]

I could not finish this book, I just couldn't get into it or even start to enjoy it, which saddened me as I love Italy & wanted to read about the place. I'm weighing up giving it away or hanging onto it to try again another time.

[Michael O'Donnell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Be prepared for lots of detail about geography, history and wine.

I think it is Real Life in Tuscany through rose coloured glasses.

Not a warts and all account. No warts. I have no idea what the Italians would make of it.

Still.....well written. I liked the 4 seasons structure.

[E · Rating 1 out of 5]

brutal. tuscany is beautiful...(I liked Under the Tuscan Sun) but this was a new level of cheese on Italy life and how "quaint" it is.

[Lu]

Italy #1 series

[Stan · Rating 2 out of 5]

A British/Australian couple move to Montalcino in Tuscany. I just about gave up as it was boring and far too descriptive, but it got better in the second half where are least some things happened.

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I recommend if you are inspired to try something different with your life.

Read the full review at OurBookClub

[RoseInaBook · Rating 2 out of 5]

A nice idea but over descriptive and so badly written, I really struggled to finish this but I forced myself to as I hate leaving a book half read.

[JoEllen Hothem · Rating 5 out of 5]

I REALLY enjoyed this book. It made me feel like I really knew Montalcino and when we finally visited there I felt like I was coming back to a place I had been before.

[Peter Hunter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely account of moving home to Italy

[Paige Y. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great book to help me prepare for Italy.

[Skye · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely, inquisitive book that examines one particular town in depth.

[Jeffrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

i spent a good amount of time in montalcino while i was in tuscany and loved it; truly an amazing town. i really wish i had read this book before going. we tried to learn the history and the language before our trip, wanting to avoid being the obvious tourist, which really was unavoidable. the author is an austrailian who moved to montalcino so her perspective is as "inside" as is possible for an outsider. i remember seeing the people and places she describes and now they have more meaning. i really hope i'm able to visit there again.