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Under the Tuscan Sun: At Home in Italy

frances mayes

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An enchanting and lyrical look at the life, the traditions, and the cuisine of Tuscany, in the spirit of Peter Mayle's A Year in Provence.

Frances Mayes entered a wondrous new world when she began restoring an abandoned villa in the spectacular Tuscan countryside. There were unexpected treasures at every turn: faded frescos beneath the whitewash in her dining room, a vineyard under wildly overgrown brambles in the garden, and, in the nearby hill towns, vibrant markets and delightful people. In Under the Tuscan Sun, she brings the lyrical voice of a poet, the eye of a seasoned traveler, and the discerning palate of a cook and food writer to invite readers to explore the pleasures of Italian life and to feast at her table.

291 pages, Paperback

First published January 1,1996
Places
tuscany, italy, 

This edition

Format
291 pages, Paperback
Published
January 1, 2003 by Broadway Books
ISBN
9780767902809
ASIN
0767902807
Language
English

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About the author

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frances mayes

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Frances Mayes's new book is See You in the Piazza: New Places to Discover in Italy published by Crown. Her most recent novel is Women in Sunlight, published by Crown and available in paperback in spring 2019. With her husband, Edward Mayes she recently published The Tuscan Sun Cookbook. Every Day in Tuscany is the third volume in her bestselling Tuscany memoir series.

In addition to her Tuscany memoirs, Under the Tuscan Sun and Bella Tuscany , Frances Mayes is the author of the memoirs Under Magnolia: A Southern Memoir; A Year in the World; the illustrated books In Tuscany and Bringing Tuscany Home; Swan, a novel; The Discovery of Poetry, a text for readers; and five books of poetry. She divides her time between homes in Italy and North Carolina.

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Community Reviews

Rating(4 / 5.0, 99 votes)
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99 reviews All reviews
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aelbereth
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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Under the Tuscan Sun was a confusing book for me. Confusing in the sense that the whole point of the book is so bizarre. Would Italians want to read about an Italian who came to North America and renovated a house and learned how to make burgers? Would they enjoy hearing the intricacies of how to make the perfect patty? And oh yes I get it. Italy is muchly much much more romantic than America and therefore easier to write romantically about. And all of us sun starved people far north of the equator are desperate for any type of warmth we can get even if it’s in Tuscan sun book form. And yes it’s her journal of their time in Italy I get it. I did enjoy reading about the Italian people although I was very sick of reading about the Estrucians or whoever those ancient people she kept drooling over. There were also pages and pages about her food. Which made me depressed because now I want to eat bread dipped in my own olive oil from my terraced hillside in the sun next to my 30 climbing rose bushes. The cabin fever is rapidly taking over. Send help
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Mara2463
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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This is about a University professor from San Francisco who is in a new relationship after a divorce. She falls in love with the Tuscan countryside after spending several summers there. She and her significant other decide to buy and renovate an old house that has been standing vacant for years. I was glad I read it because I learned a lot about the Italian culture, but it didn’t absorb me like a good novel. It’s a book you can read for a couple of hours and put down and not pick up again for several days. I was disappointed that she didn’t include some photographs and was also surprised that she didn’t become involved with the local people on a social level, but just to hire them to do projects for her. Simply put, I suggest you skip this one unless you're really interested in: a. Italy, b. Food, or c. Travel.
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RedClanQueen
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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I saw the movie first and didn't realize it was based on a book.

So first of all, this is not a novel. It's a woman's journal of the purchase and clean up of an old house in Tuscany. It includes recipes, gardening directions, weather reports, menus, etc. And if that's what you were expecting, it's actually very good. However, I unfortunately saw the movie when it came out, in complete ignorance that it was a book first.

And. . . I'm still confused about how *this* book got made into *that* movie. I'd already read Extra Virgin, and felt that this book was a weak imitation.

Had I not known the movie or the other book, I think I'd have liked this better. And I'd strongly recommend it to anyone travelling there (or moving there). Her descriptions of food were amazing! I especially liked the way she described menus, and how they ate what was in season and accessible. It made me crave cheese and fruit!
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September
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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This was a re-read, and I loved it again. I know there's plenty here who
don't think much of this book, but it totally appeals to my utterly romantic
notions of running away to live in Europe someday....sigh.... ;-) Haven't
been to Italy yet, but this book *was* largely responsible for my subsequent
trips to France, Spain, and Turkey. And my list (TBV list - "to be
visited" - tee hee) has been growing ever since.

This was also my first PalmPilot read, and I was pleasantly surprised to
find that I completely enjoyed reading on my teensy little baby computer. I
wonder if we will ever reach that vision of the paperless society that was
touted when the first home computers came out way back when. Could the Palm
Pilot finally represent the beginning of the end of cutting down massive
tracts of forests to support our voracious appetite for the printed word. I
particularly found the PP nice for reading in bed. Lightweight, clear
easy-to-read font, easy thumb clicks to turn the pages, and complete with
its own light. Very cool. Donna's a happy PalmPilot reader. ;-)
Unfortunately, my tiny little book budget will still keep me library-bound,
but I look forward to the occasional e-book splurge.
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Vex_ation
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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I want to start by saying that reading this while actually in Tuscany is just unfair because of her beautifully accurate descriptions of Italy. It really is this gorgeous. I feel like while I loved much of the prose that at times she lost me when talking about the people she’s hired to rebuild Bramsole and her attitude about what it is actually like to live in Italy versus a romanticized version of it. All of that is to say I deeply romanticize it also and don’t want to leave Tuscany (however I would not make a wild purchase on a whim while being unaware of myself/thoughts/actions)
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Heatherfall
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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I love travel writing and was really looking forward to reading this book. Sadly for me, about a third of the way through I realized that I wasn't reading a book about Italy or travel, I was reading a very long, very dry book about home improvement that just happened to take place in Tuscany.
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ReginaPatricia
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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If you start this book thinking you'll get more of the movie, you'll be a little disappointed. This is a well written book about moving to Italy, repairing an old villa and getting accustomed to a new culture and new neighbors. The atmosphere is relaxing and this is a great book to read in the autumn.
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milktchi
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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Nikad me srce ovoliko nije zabolelo prilikom ocenjivanja.
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