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Rococo: A Novel
Current price:
$17.00
Publication Date: April 25th, 2006
Publisher:
Ballantine Books
ISBN:
9780812967814
Pages:
320
Description
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • One small Italian American town in America gets the makeover it never expected in this “eccentric, unpredictable, entertaining” (The Boston Globe) novel from the author of the beloved Big Stone Gap series
“An artfully designed tale [with] characters so lively they bounce off the page [and] wit so subtle that even the best jokes seem effortless.”—People
Bartolomeo di Crespi is the acclaimed interior decorator—not to mention the most eligible bachelor—in Our Lady of Fatima, New Jersey. From the dazzling shores of the Garden State to the legendary fabric houses of New York City, from the prickly purveyors of fine art in London to the Mediterranean coast of Italy, Bartolomeo is on a mission to bring talent, sophistication, and his aesthetic vision to his hometown. So when the renovation of the local church is scheduled, he assumes there is only one man to oversee the job.
Recruiting an artist and a stained-glass artisan to help with the project—two handsome men who create romantic mayhem among Bartolomeo’s sister, his erstwhile fiancée, and all the other lovelorn ladies of OLOF—Bartolomeo struggles to create art while remaining the steadfast linchpin of the volatile di Crespi clan. Together, Bartolomeo and his team will do more than blow the dust off the old Fatima frescoes—they will turn the town upside down, challenge the faithful, and restore hope where there once was none.
Praise for Rococo: A Novel
“A veritable crazy quilt of quirky Italian Americans . . .Trigiani weaves all [the] subplots together with wonderful ease.”—Entertainment Weekly
“A summer must-read. . . a hilarious mix of. . . humor, lust, [and] family dynamics.”—The Hartford Courant
“A feel-good story . . . manages to soothe, in part because of its cozy design talk, and in part because of the likable, competent B.”—Publishers Weekly
“An affectionate celebration of the support we derive from family and community, told with humor and warmth.”—Hartford Courant
“[Trigiani] delivers charming, dependably satisfying books that you know will be stuffed with quirky but likable characters. . . . Throughout this fast-paced, abundantly charming novel, Trigiani focuses on the things that really matter: family, faith and home. Especially home. It is a deeply rewarding book that should make her legions of fans very happy indeed.”—BookPage
“A rollicking read . . . The comic prose itself deserves applause.”—Booklist
“Here’s your beach read . . . [Rococo] is as much fun as [Trigiani’s] previous novels. . . . There are hilarious encounters here and abroad, with so many colorful citizens darting in and out of the pages that it is impossible to name favorites.”—Roanoke Times
“[A] kitschy, quaintly amusing Italian American saga . . . [B is a] unique and winning protagonist.”—Kirkus Reviews
“Tiramisu for the soul . . . It’s rejuvenating to read a book as light and crisp as Rococo. . . . An authentic sentimental tale, with characters you very quickly adore . . . like a bubble bath you don’t want to get out of.”—Washington Examiner
“[Adriana Trigiani] again shows her abilities to take the everyday happenings of a small town and turn them into a story that is entertaining and just plain fun in Rococo. Trigiani has an elegant writing style that captures the essence of her characters and makes them larger than life on the written page.”—Texas Times Record News
“It would be impossible not to like a hero who declares that ‘Italy, despite its earthiness and charm, can never be New Jersey.’”—The Christian Science Monitor
“Breathtaking . . . full of color, fabric, love, lust and secrets”—The Huntsville Times
“Lighthearted . . . hilarious . . . Trigiani has a bombastic comedic style.”—Deseret Morning News
“A paean to Italian life . . . laugh-out-loud funny . . . it’s The Sopranos without the mob hits and the psychotherapy.”—Fort Worth Star-Telegram
