LAURENCE MACKINreviews Calatafimiby Angus Campbell and Lonely Planet's Tuscany and Umbriaguide
Calatafimi
Angus Campbell
DLM, £18.99
Angus Campbell worked in advertising in Rome and London before retiring to the Sicilian town of Calatafimi, where his wife is from. It is not a place that will immediately leap to most people’s lips when asked to pick a Sicilian favourite, but this, Campbell says, is precisely the point. His exhaustive history of the town leaves no stone unturned and no minor or major architectural feature unmentioned.
Campbell has adopted an odd writing style; the book reads as if it is an elongated letter home to one of his former advertising colleagues. Campbell never misses an opportunity to wax lyrically about how wonderful life is in his Italian fiefdom and scoff at the foolishness of the reader, still stuck in rainy London with shoddy ricotta from Fortnum Mason, while Campbell is feasting on the real thing, bought from his neighbour Nicola, who made it at home while holding two fingers up to the bureaucrats from Brussels.
Any intimacy Campbell hopes to foster is compromised by an unbearably smug tone that grates on the nerves.
This comes across as vanity publishing in every sense. Nicola, you have our sympathies.
Tuscany & Umbria
Lonely Planet, £12.99
If mainland Italy is more your style, there’s plenty to tempt in Tuscany and Umbria. This guide opens with a colourful list of highlights, including Italian icons (from where to get your Gucci to the best place to rev up a Vespa), natural wonders (from sea caves to truffle hunts) and some top foodie tips. A slightly more irreverent writing style does no harm here, though we’re not sure Michelangelo’s David would agree.