Like a saint's relics, Dante's bones have been stolen, exhumed, and worshiped. Guy Raffa narrates the Florentine poet's hereafter--the physical afterlife of the writer who vividly imagined the spiritual afterlife. In the story of the bones lies the tale of Dante's evolution from Renaissance to Italian to nationalist hero, and finally global icon

"Italy has a bewildering cultural patrimony. Where do you start? With Giotto? With Caravaggio? In murky Etruscan tombs or the mighty Roman Pantheon? Speak the Culture: Italy sifts through a sprawling 3,000 year saga and makes sense of it; dissecting architecture, music, food, art, literature, cinema and much more. Michelangelo, Machiavelli and Mussolini: you've heard of them, but how did they live? What were their achievements and failings, and how are they remembered in Italy today? Speak the Culture: Italy explores the place of these and other figures in the national identity, in the story that made the modern nation. Culture is covered in its broadest sense, extending into the everyday modes of life - the food and drink, religion, politics, sport, character and so on. On one side lies the famous lust for life, expressed in everything from the Carnevale Di Venezia to the family mealtime; on the other lies a darker story of organised crime, corruption and political transience. And while the Italian peninsula has its ancient history, as a state the famous boot, or Lo Stivale, remains young, so the nuances of strong, surviving regional identities are also revealed."--Publisher's description.

The third series of Culture Smart! guides are digests of essential cultural information, aimed at both tourists and business people. Culture Smart! guides are concise, pocket-sized paperbacks that are filled with information, offering invaluable insights into every aspect of a country's life.

"This volume explores how womens' relationships with food have been represented in Italian literature, theater, film, advertising, visual arts and other forms of cultural expression from the nineteenth century to the present. Contributions offer a close reading of the symbolic meanings associated with food and of the way these intersect with Italian women's socio-cultural history and the feminist movement, addressing issues of gender, identity and politics of the body. With case studies that look at Sophia Loren to an analysis of women and food in Italian chef's cookbooks, the collection presents a comprehensive understanding of the unique contribution Italian culture has made to perceiving and portraying women in a specific relation to food. Looking at how Italian women have been portrayed cooking and serving meals to others, while denying themselves the pleasure of the table, these essays help us understand the role food and food-related-activities have in women's lives"--

"Italy has long been romanticized as an idyllic place. Italian food and foodways play an important part in this romanticization - from bountiful bowls of fresh pasta to bottles of Tuscan wine. While such images oversimplify the complex reality of modern Italy, they are central to how Italy is imagined by Italians and non-Italians alike. Representing Italy through Food is the first book to examine how these perceptions are constructed, sustained, promoted, and challenged. Recognizing the power of representations to construct reality, the book explores how Italian food and foodways are represented across the media - from literature to film and television, from cookbooks to social media, and from marketing campaigns to advertisements. Bringing together established scholars such as Massimo Montanari and Ken Albala with emerging scholars in the field, the thirteen chapters offer new perspectives on Italian food and culture. Featuring both local and global perspectives - which examine Italian food in the United States, Australia and Israel - the book reveals the power of representations across historical, geographic, socio-economic, and cultural boundaries and asks if there is anything that makes Italy unique. An important contribution to our understanding of the enduring power of Italy, Italian culture and Italian food - both in Italy and beyond. Essential reading for students and scholars in food studies, Italian studies, media studies, and cultural studies."--

NATIONAL & REGIONAL CUISINE. Italian cuisine automatically conjures up the vision of a multitude of dishes, each one completely different from the others. Every regional cuisine has its unique characteristics. Most regional dishes were influenced by historical circumstances, by climate and by Italy's geographical configuration. This volume, created in close collaboration with the Academia Barilla (founded to defend, protect and disseminate typical and authentic Italian gastronomic products), serves all who are eager to learn the secrets of genuine Italian cuisine; the dishes recognised at regional specialities. To explain the nature-based and cultural origins of regional foods, Academia Barilla selected 30 of the finest Italian chefs.