5-second book review: Italian Life Tim Parks

Italian Life: a modern fable of loyalty and betrayal by Tim Parks

Italian Life is a brilliant book about University life in Italy. Honest and insightful about the way higher education works on the peninsula. Tim Parks is an expert in Italian literature and culture. With Italian Life, he has created an intriguing tale filled with accurate, infuriating and on-point observations.

As an ex-pat living in Italy, I don’t know whether to laugh or cry at some situations this novel recounts. All I can say is it is honest without being cynical, hopeful, or naive.

A beautiful book about a convoluted, corrupt and sometimes ugly part of Italy.--

Tim Parks Italian Life: a modern fable of loyalty and betrayal is a must-read if you want to understand how the Italian education system works. Be warned; it is filled with convoluted bureaucracy, cronyism and endless political wrangling. All as flamboyant and unexpected as the Italian peninsula itself.

Books also written by Tim Parks well worth a read: Italian Neighbours, An Italian Education, A season with Verona, The Hero’s Way: walking with Garibaldi from Rome to Ravenna, Italian Ways: on and off the rails from Milan to Palermo, A literary tour of Italy.