That Fine Italian Hand

by Paul Hofmann

Overview

No other people over so long a history have shown a greater knack for survival than the Italians. In this wryly affectionate book, Hofmann reveals his adopted countrymen in all their glorious paradoxes, capturing their national essence as no other book has done since Luigi Barzini's classic, The Italians. The national art of "arrangement"— dodging taxes, double-dealing, working only as hard as one must— is counteracted by Italian inventive genius, gusto for life, fierce individuality, deep family bonds (as well as animosities), and a marvelously hedonistic sophistication.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780805017298
Publisher:	Holt, Henry & Company, Inc.
Publication date:	03/15/1991
Edition description:	REV
Pages:	264
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.57(d)

About the Author

Paul Hofmann was a foreign correspondent for The New York Times for almost thirty-five years and was chief of its Rome Bureau. He is the author of The Vatican's Women, and presently a contributor to the Sunday magazine of the Times, as well as its Travel section. He lives in Rome.

Editorial Reviews

An entertaining and shrewd appraisal of an ancient, ever-changing nation.” —Publishers Weekly

“Nourishing antipasti before the feast of an Italian visit.” —San Diego Union

From the Publisher