Anyway some of the biggest changes I've made include the scrapping of Vittoria. The main character is now Olivia, a 20th century gal who finds herself transported through time to meet the dashing hero Giovanni. She becomes embroiled in his life; but what about her fiance Paolo waiting for her in 1992? Hmm, it's a quandry: handsome stranger in the Renaissance or dependable guy in the future...I'll let you ponder over what decision Olivia makes.
I've been having a lot of fun with the book, and in particular the research. My latest purchase from Amazon is
"Inside the Renaissance House" by Elizabeth Currie. It offers great info on the structure, decoration, function etc of rooms within a Renaissance house. And it's in easy, lay terms so it
would also be good for children's school projects.
So, this post is also a bit of a review. But then, if I'm reviewing books that I have used in the research of my novel, there are so many that I want to add that I'm not quite sure if I should start. If you are interested in the Renaissance and the history of Italy you can't beat Christopher Hibbert. I think he must be the smartest man in the world, and if I wasn't already happily married then I think I'd like to marry this man!!
I have of his:
"The House of Medici: Its Rise and Fall" - an absolutely BRILLIANT account of the Medici family, an absolute must for anyone interested in the Medici family or Medici Florence.
"The English: A Social History 1066-1945" - excellent and incredibly thorough overview of English history.
"Venice: A biography of a city" - as its name suggests!! Very interesting history of one of my favourite places in Italy. I absolutely LOVE Venice!! You should totally get there if you ever have the chance. I remember a trip I had there once with a group of friends; we had lovely red wine, hot chocolate, delicious antipasto and sweets. Winter is a divine time to go because it's not too crowded and the water isn't as smelly as it can be in summer.
ANYHOO......!Christopher Hibbert has also written plenty of books on English history, Italian, French and more. Check him out if European history is your thing. (And no, I'm not collecting any royalties for the sale of his books, I just love him!!)
I was antique shopping with my mum a lttle while ago in Kogarah, Sydney and I found a real gem. This book is called "The Medici in Florence: The exercise and language of power" by Alison Brown. I absolutely love this book because it still had pages uncut and I had to cut them with a knife! I felt like I was in the Renaissance myself and was opening a precious copy of a book that had freshly been printed in Giorgio Verlucci's printing factory! It is a university text from the University of Western Australia and it offers some really unique and interesting views on the use of language and power in the reign of the Medici. Not so suitable for children's projects this one, unless they're teaching Latin in primary school since I was last there!! But, a worthwhile book if you can get your hands on it.Another must have in the study of the Renaissance is Lauro Martines. I only have of his, "Fire in the City: Savonarola and the Struggle for the Soul of Renaissance Florence,"
but I know he has written quite extensively on the topic and also published a novel set in the Renaissance too. (Hmm, praising the competition, maybe not such a smart idea KV!)Well, I got a bit off the topic here, but I hope if you're looking to research the Renaissance in Italy and Florence some of the books I've listed here will be beneficial.
And hopefully I'll get my sweet little butt back online more often to post here and actually gain some sort of following (a bit hello to you Summer - I hope you'll still read this!!
Bacci xxx KV
1 comment:
I'm so glad you've come back to blogging! I love your new blog design. 108,000 words for your book - oh my goodness!! I can't wait to read it.
Summer
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