I was told that the author had enjoyed traveling in Italy, so wrote a novel so he could describe Italy in detail. That part I liked, though please don't tell me all about churches and architecture without photos or illustrations - which of course is an impossibility when listening to a book, but I'm quite sure the novel wasn't illustrated. (That's why I liked that illustrated Da Vinci Code book so well.)
What surprised me was, that this was a football story. Rick Dockery, a third string quarterback makes major mistakes in a major game and escapes to play in Italy. I could really do without the play by play descriptions of the games, though I did learn something about the game - it has been just a bunch of guys bashing into each other to me. I admit to total ignorance of one of America's great pastimes.
I did like the Italians and their enthusiasm for the game without expecting any pay, and the support and friendliness they showed to Rick, the down and out quarterback. I enjoyed seeing him regain his confidence. I understood more of my uncle Frank, who married my mother's sister. I now regret that I didn't take the chance to be with him and his Italian friends more. The seemed louder than my family, and I didn't understand their joking style. This book has helped clarify that.
A major part of the Italian culture is food, and Grisham did a good job of describing eating in Italy, which just enforced what Gilbert had said in her book Eat, Pray, Love. As with the architecture, I was wishing for a visual, or actually, a taste of all he mentioned. Again, I got insight into my aunt, who was very food focused. She was a great cook and took care to feed us well, though pasta wasn't usually part of her holiday meals.
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