Maria Famà – “I will not check the box for white on any form”
Maria Famà’s poem “I Am Not White” lives in the folded places between two worlds. Through her Italian-American eyes we see her lived experience of …
Italian Stories
Snow Harvesters and the Origins of Gelato
Like the tomato sauce on pasta, there are few things that today say Italian as much as gelato. Particularly gelato from a local gelateria. Dozens …
Genes and the Intimacy of Place
The pictures above were made by scientists who study genes. They tell a story. Two completely different kinds of information are combined to tell it: …
The Fifty-Three Known Forefathers of the Italian People: Latest Discoveries
This is a story about Italian y-DNA. But putting it that way is misleading. For there is not a single coherent story of “Italianness” that …
The Resurrection of Don Paolo: Il Drago Part 5
In this fifth instalment of Il Drago, Don Paolo comes back to life. After the unexpected battle between the Old Dragon and the Witch, the …
Earthquakes – La Terra Trema
Italy’s changeable landscape is as much a character in her history as the people who live within her. Repeatedly, earthquakes are written into that history. …
Doctor Who? Trotula of Salerno
She was a doctor and a master of the art of healing who taught others. She is usually called Trotula, although her true name was …
Sicily’s Medieval Map of the World
It must have been magnificent to see: a vast world map made of pure silver. For three centuries no better map was made. The glittering …
Italy’s Day of the Dead
Signora Maria of Castellaneta observes: “… the dead are our brothers, our children, our husbands, our parents… they cannot be monsters”. Her comment captures the essential …