The Italians

Ever since the Goths swept down over the Alps, Italy has been prone to invasion by armies, by poets and painters in search of inspiration, by archaeologists seeking to resurrect the classical past, and by millions of tourists bewitched by a somewhat vague picture at the back of their minds by an amalgam of sun, fun and Chianti. Luigi Barzini’s book touches on nearly every aspect of Italian life; it examines Italy’s many faces, landscapes, cities and peoples, it studies the Italians’ habits, vices, virtues, hopes, failures and achievements, past, present and future. Doctor Barzini shows us Italy through the eyes of foreigners and through the eyes of Italians. Most important of all, he shows us Italy from his own highly original point of view.