3 Books for Wintry Weekends (Plus, a Few Other Favorites)
Grab
your fluffiest throw and settle in with these captivating new novels.
1 of 6
The Sun and Other Stars: A Novel
By Brigid Pasulka
336 pages;
Simon & Schuster
In the (fictional) Italian coastal village of San Benedetto,
22-year-old narrator Etto is perhaps the only inhabitant not obsessed with
calcio (aka
soccer). As such, he's a disappointment to his father—the only
immediate family member Etto has left, after the deaths of his mother and twin
brother. When calcio
star Yuri Fil unexpectedly takes up residence for the summer, entourage in tow,
Etto falls for the superstar's sister,
the task of winning her helping him to work through his grief. The author
beautifully evokes life in an Italian tourist town, from the sparkling sea, the
breezes off the water and the daily bustle of setting up beach chairs at the
bagni to its
colorful cast of nightclub owners, fishermen and the ever-present nonne—the grannies
who pull strings behind the scenes. Throughout, Etto's likable, slightly
sheepish persona gives the narrative charm and the occasional flight of
poetry—as when he describes his paramour midmatch: "her cheeks
flushed, her silky shorts fluttering against her thighs like the flag of a
mythical country." What results is a celebration of young love, sunshine
and la dolce vita, no
matter the weather outside.
— Susan Welsh
Published 02/06/2014