Product Description

Anthony Doerr has received many awards -- from the New York Public Library, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the American Library Association. Then came the Rome Prize, one of the most prestigious awards from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and with it a stipend and a writing studio in Rome for a year. Doerr learned of the award the day he and his wife returned from the hospital with newborn twins.

Exquisitely observed, Four Seasons in Rome describes Doerr's varied adventures in one of the most enchanting cities in the world. He reads Pliny, Dante, and Keats -- the chroniclers of Rome who came before him -- and visits the piazzas, temples, and ancient cisterns they describe. He attends the vigil of a dying Pope John Paul II and takes his twins to the Pantheon in December to wait for snow to fall through the oculus. He and his family are embraced by the butchers, grocers, and bakers of the neighborhood, whose clamor of stories and idiosyncratic child-rearing advice is as compelling as the city itself.

This intimate and revelatory book is a celebration of Rome, a wondrous look at new parenthood, and a fascinating story of a writer's craft -- the process by which he transforms what he sees and experiences into sentences.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #987863 in Books
• Published on: 2007-06-12
• Format: Bargain Price
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 224 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Acclaimed novelist and short story writer Doerr turns out a well-observed chronicle of his family's year in Rome, when he was a fellow at the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Doerr is a precise, lyrical writer who, dividing his book into seasons, captures in equal measures the wonder of the Italian countryside, the mind-boggling history of the Eternal City and the measured joys and trials of parenting twin baby boys. Upon their autumn arrival, it is the boys who most connect Doerr and his wife to their new city: "Grown men in suits stop and crouch over the stroller and croon. Older men in particular. Che carini. Che belli. What cuties. What beauties." In Spring, Doerr captures well the color and emotionof the vigil for the dying Pope John Paul II, providing insight into the man and his death: "More than three miles of artwork hang in the Vatican Museum and the pope could have any of it brought in front of him...Instead, he wants only to hear something read from the Bible in Polish." The memoir is full of other such rewarding passages, and anyone with fond memories of Rome will want to savor it slowly. Illustrations.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
The recipient of an American Academy fellowship, Doerr, his wife, and their twin newborns are on their way to Rome for a year. Cultural isolation, the death of John Paul II, struggles to complete a novel, and the tales of first-time parenthood uniquely blend together as Doerr meanders his way through a one-year Roman holiday. Along the way, he meets Romans quick to praise his twins, Romans quick to prejudge an American, and Romans happy to share the secrets of their city with him. Set against this backdrop, Doerr finds it difficult to focus on the novel he plans on writing; instead, like so many other visitors, he falls for the Eternal City. For readers who have been to Rome, Doerr's reflections will leave them longing for a return trip. For those who have not, Doerr's stories of piazzas and pizzas will have them checking travel arrangements. Either way, this memoir is a wonderful combination of a writer's two dominant struggles: cultural identity and family. Blair Parsons
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review
"Anthony Doerr found himself in the perfect Eternal City with the eternal Paternal Problem: how to care for two beautiful newborn twins while still doing his work as a writer and student and observer. The result is a funny, precise, touching account of cultural barricades crossed and fatherly exhaustions overcome; a story of the universalities of parenting and the specificities of Roman life that will lift the heart of every parent and delight the mind of every lover of Italy."

-- Adam Gopnik, author of Through the Children's Gate and From Paris to the Moon

Customer Reviews

An excellent and easy read.
I don't read much -- I have a really short attention span -- but anything about Rome usually catches my attention. I've been there a few times and have absolutely fallen in love with that city. Some travelogs about Rome are too highbrow for me, or a little too intellectual, so I'm always searching for non-fiction that conveys a real sense of the city. This book did it. It's very easy to read, and the author so perfectly nails the details about the city (and even gave me a few clues about new things to go and see that I haven't seen before!). The way he describes the nuances of each season makes me crave a return trip. It's a beautifully-written book, for anyone who loves Rome, or for anyone who's curious about visiting this most amazing city.

Flawless; a perfect summer read...
In a word, fantastic. Perhaps the clearest tribute is that I've never been to Rome, raised children, nor tried to write a novel, yet still found this book to be wonderfully compelling. "Four Seasons in Rome" is alternatively hysterical and poignant, and always beautifully written. Doerr - an accomplished fiction writer - couldn't have made a smoother transition to a new genre. In fact, his nearly super human powers of perception are especially well-suited for describing and bringing to life the sounds, smells, feel, and wonder of everday Rome. A perfect reminder of the beauty of the seemingly mundane. And a perfect summer read for just about anyone.

Unforgettable!
If you have ever had children...if you have travelled or want to travel to Europe...you should read this book! It is a relatively quick read, which is good for busy people - you won't be able to put it down.

Anthony Doerr recognized a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, that happened to come along at a most inopportune time, and grabbed it. On the day his twin sons were born, Mr. Doerr received notification that he had received a grant to study or work at pretty much whatever he wanted for a year in Rome. Luckily his wife Shauna also must have recognized the necessity of grabbing this chance while it was available, and so they packed up their babies and traveled from Boise to Rome. Lucky for us, he decided to spend part of his time constructing this memoir.

After reading Doerr's elegant, evocative prose, it's easy to see why the powers-that-be decided that his gift should be nurtured. He is just as awed by the adventure of raising his children as by the experience of living in Rome. Unlike other books in this very broad genre of expat memoir, Doerr does not focus on the quirks and foibles of the Italians. Rather, he describes his own little circle of family, friends and acquaintances and frequently lapses into long lyrical musings on historical events, nature, or whatever happens to strike his fancy. "The Biggest Funeral in the History of the World," aka the funeral of Pope John Paul II, is not treated as a gigantic pageant, despite the hyperbolic title. Through Doerr's eyes it is a profoundly moving and inclusive experience shared by millions.

I loved this book. It is the kind of book you want to urge your friends and loved ones to read, to give as a gift. I look forward to reading much more from this gifted and warm writer.