Description
Book SynopsisAt the age of eleven, Helena Frith Powell's mother gave her a letter after school. It was from her real father her mother told her, not the abusive and moody man Helena had always assumed was the one. This new father was glamorous, an Italian film maker, and he would like her to meet his family on a grand tour of Italy. The moving discovery of Italy and the many relatives Helena never knew she had is wittily described in Ciao Bella, the memoir of her trip through Italy with her father. In a new twist, her father receives a prestigious literary prize in 2008 at the age of 80 and is reunited with her mother after 25 years - will it last?
Trade Review'You really must read... Ciao Bella.' Sunday Times 'Magical.' Daily Mail 'Richly comic.' Sunday Times Best Memoir 'Humorous.' Daily Telegraph 'Beautifully written... I wanted to follow in Helena's footsteps round Italy.' Kate Figes 'I defy anyone not to enjoy it.' Harrow Observer 'A travel book with a difference.' Coventry Evening Telegraph
Table of ContentsPrologue 5 1. Two Hundred and Forty Steps 9 2. Nothing Gay about Gabriel 52 3. Fish and Fidelity 72 4. A Date with Caravaggio 103 5. Birds Obsessed with Sex 120 6. Truffles with Everything 150 7. Dinner with a Princess 162 8. An Erotic Tour of Venice 182 9. A Figure in Black and Blue 205 10. On Rimini Beach 221 11. Tea at the Grand Hotel 251 12. Unconditional Love 267 Afterword 286
