The Italians

John Hooper is a journalist who has spent many years living and working in Italy. Previously he worked and lived in Spain and wrote The New Spaniards, an excellent introduction to Spain. The Italians is similar to that book. He takes a big picture view of Italy, examining its history, the system of justice, politics, crime (including the Mafia), religion, and so on. Obviously that's a lot to take on, so it's a survey, not a deep down inspection. As revealing and informative as I found The Italians, I also found that this broad brush method left me wondering more about how the people spend their leisure time. Certainly it's valuable to learn about the political parties and the fading influence of the Catholic Church. But, as an example, I want to know what Italians do on their vacations. In travels through the popular tourist spots in Europe and the U.S., I rarely see Italian tourists. Do they go elsewhere? Stay home? Travel within Italy? What kind of books do they like to read? What's on Italian TV? Hooper gave me meat and potatoes, and I still wanted a gelato. It isn't fair to take issue with The Italians for not being fluffy enough for my taste. It's a comprehensive and well-researched look at Italy today and I learned an amazing amount about the country. And like so many books by journalists, it's clear and to the point. It's definitely a book you'll want to read before or during a trip to Italy, whether it's your first trip or twentieth.