The Italian Way

by Mario Costantino and Lawrence Gambella

For All Students Ideal for a variety of course, this valuable handbook helps students understand how people from every corner of Italy think, do business, and act in their daily lives.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0844280720
• ISBN13: 9780844280721
• Release Date: April 1996
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Companies
• Length: 136 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

A good, soild overview

The Italian Way is a good, solid overview of Italian customs and language for those traveling to the Penisula for the first time. While of particular interest to non-Italians, the book is good refresher/reminder to those of us of Italian descent of the differences between us and our 'cousins'.

The Italian Way

Secured Packaging. Prompt. I would do business with them again.

Interesting read for those that want to understand Italian culture

In the introduction the authors tell us that the purpose of the book is to provide snapshots of daily life. If you have ever been to Italy you know that they have a different notion of what it means to live. Every visit that I have every made to Italy there has been a general strike that has taken place. The first time I visited Italy this fact mystified me. Now, I just know that this is what happens and I don't let it bother me. This book is a collection of short discussion on a variety of topics. The topics covered are as follows: 1. April Fool's Day 2. At the table 3. Attracting Attention 4. Bad Luck Day 5. Il Bar 6. Le barzellette (joke) 7. Basic Expressions in Italian 8. La Befana 9. Business 10. Calcio (Soccer) 11. Calendar 12. Calling Cards 13. Il campanilismo 14. Il carnevale 15. Celebrations and holidays 16. Compliments, appreciation, and criticism 17. Dating and Marriage 18. Driving in Italy 19. Education 20. Expressions such as Dio mio! 21. Eye contact in conversation 22. Family and friends 23. Il Ferragosto 24. Form of government and politics 25. Gallantry 26. Gestures 27. Houses and housing 28. Introductions 29. Italian films 30. Italy on wheels 31. The kitchen 32. The language 33. Letters 34. Made in Italy 35. Ma lei non sa chi sono io! (You don't know who I am) 36. Il malocchio (evil eye) 37. M'arrangio 38. Meals and mealtimes 39. Monetary unit - the lira (this is now out of date) 40. Navigating a building 41. Number usage in different situations 42. On stage in Italy 43. Opera 44. Il Palio 45. People's names and name days 46. Physical distance and contact 47. La Piazza: the center of daily life 48. Politicians 49. Professional and civil titles 50. Pro loco 51. Punctuality 52. La raccomandazione 53. Religion 54. Restaurants 55. Lo sciopero (strikes) 56. Shopping 57. Signs 58. Lo sport 59. Telephones 60. The term American 61. Tests 62. Time of day 63. Transportation 64. The two faces of Italy 65. Tu, Lei, and voi 66. La vendemmia 67. Visiting 68. Waiting in line 69. Ways of conveying information 70. We make love, not war 71. The wines of Italy 72. Women 73. Work 74. The world of youth The sections that speak of male and female interaction are very valuable for women traveling to Italy alone. Italians are very expressive people. They are much more demonstrative than Americans. This book covers that fact in great detail, and does a nice job of getting the point across. Physical beauty is greatly prized in Italy, and this will result in more than a few pinches when you are a woman in Italy unaccompanied. Overall, I think this is useful little book to read before leaving for your first trip to Italy. It won't make a lot of sense before you arrive in Italy. However, once you are there much of it will become clear.

More entertainment, less of a serious introduction

This slender volume reads fast. A comprehensive study of Italian culture is beyond the scope of this book. The authors have arranged 74 brief "points" about daily life in Italy, alphabetically by subject, so the reader doesn't know what is coming next. If you look at the sample pages available here, you will get a sense of the leaps: we begin with an explanation of the Italian version of April Fool's Day, followed by four paragraphs on table manners, and then we're on to "attracting attention," and so on. From the very way it's organized, we are clearly in the realm of entertainment, although the information is accurate and certainly useful. There is a dusting of vocabulary, but it's not a course in Italian for travellers. I found it a delightful and fascinating read.

La Vita Italiana

This book offers true, informative facts about Italy and the Italian lifestyle in an easy to read format. It's a great read for anyone planning a trip to Italy or for anyone simply interested in this magnificent country.