I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti: A Memoir (Unabridged) [Audio Download]

I'm normally not a fan of memoirs or even most non fiction. Unless I have to read a book for school, you can usually find me with a fiction book in my hands. However, this book was totally able to capture my attention and may have made a convert out of me. Reading it was like reading about my own life. It made me laugh, cry, cringe, and be hungry all at the same time. Giulia's writing makes you feel like you're sitting at the table after dinner with a glass of wine and catching up on old stories. As Giulia goes through each relationship, my heart ached for her and I really felt like I was there and needed to console her. There are times when you want to be like "No! He's a jerk, get away!!" and others where you're in love with the guy too because he's so sweet and kind. There are some scenes where I just burst out laughing at how Giulia attempts to win the guy over because it was exactly how I used to act. They're so reminiscent of my life that it's almost painful to read.

The highlight of the book is all the food that is mentioned. The recipes are interwoven into each relationship as Giulia talks about the different meals and dishes she would make for each guy. Never one to eat a same meal twice, Giula takes pride in the way she cooks and each dish has a special meaning. The food mentioned in here are to die for. They are simple to make, with easy ingredients that aren't hard to find, yet they are a step above the norm. You can make them for a dinner party and will totally impress your guests. The titles of the dishes range from normal (Grilled Marinated Flank Steak) to fancy (Linguine with Friendly Little Fish) to hilarious (Spaghetti and Meatballs for Cooking Sluts and Those Who Love Them). They all sound delicious and I'm eager to try out a few of these in the future.

This really was an enjoyable book to read. It's perfect for both chick lit and foodie fans. It's a charming, relatable and mouth watering read. Do not read this book on an empty stomach and be prepared to whip up a feast when you are done reading. HIGHLY recommended.

Sorry. I really wanted to love this book. But, this woman makes intelligent women everywhere look really naive (or, should I just say "stupid".) The recipes look great and I will try some...eventually. I was just so disappointed in this book that I can't bring myself to open it back up. I wouldn't even call it a good beach read for the summer. There were a couple of instances of witty writing that made me laugh out loud, but for such a slim book, those were few and far between.

This book is worth buying for the recipes -- but the narrative didn't work for me. There are FAR too many minute details about each relationship. For me, it bogged things down and prevented it from being the funny, light-hearted book I was expecting.

Another thing that surprised me ... Giulia Melucci is obviously a very pretty, stylish, intelligent woman (at least as far as I can see in the jacket bio and photo) -- but she comes off as desperate and very, very naive about what she wanted, or thought she wanted. That's ok, if it's coupled with some funny self-reflection ... but that seemed to be missing.