A journey into the heart of Sicily, using art, food, history and literature to shed light on southern Italy's legacy of political corruption and violent crime. The book takes as its starting point the ongoing trial of seven-times Prime Minister Giulio Andreotti.
Midnight in Sicily
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‘essential reading’ -- The Book Magazine
About the Author
Peter Robb was born in Toorak in 1946 and grew up in Australia and New Zealand. He arrived in Europe in 1971, working as a night-club bouncer in England, a philologist in Finland, and a teacher in France. He returned to Australia in the mid '70s and there taught English to immigrants. In 1978 he set off for South America, but he got no further than Naples. He spent the next 15 years in southern Italy teaching and writing. He has recently completed a book on Carvaggio entitled M.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
51 of 53 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I read Peter Robb's capolavoro while on holiday in Sicily. My first two nights were in Palermo, where I noticed that once the shops close no one dares the time-honoured tradition of the evening passeggiata. And a day later, I read why, in Peter Robb's prose. You hear a footstep round a corner, a door shuts somewhere, but nowhere do you see the people. They vanish as night falls. What you sense in Sicily but can't explain, Peter Robb puts into words. It is better than any guidebook and the nearest you'll come to getting under the skin of the place. The book is a strange juxtaposition of topics. He can take you from a three-page history of caponata, quoting the Italian Mrs Beeton, Alda Busi, and Elizabeth David, to a harrowing account of Mafiosi murders, and all within the turn of a page. Yet none of this seems strange. I went from seeing women begging on the street with week-old babies in their arms to the jet-set Milanese within four hours - from Palermo to the Aeolian Islands in summer holiday mood. The book is both passion and sadness. The elements of life worth experiencing - in prose, even if you never have the chance to set foot in Sicily to experience them in the flesh.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
By a reader
Format:Paperback
I'd just read Lampedusa's dazzling 'The Leopard' when I spotted this by chance in a bookshop and got hooked while flicking through.
I really enjoyed it. As other reviewers have noted, 'Midnight in Sicily' combines all sorts of aspects of Sicilian life and history, from the development of the fork to domestic violence. It gives a lot of jaw-dropping, eye-opening information about the mafia, and about how Cosa Nostra's influence had spread to politics and the Vatican before its existence was even acknowledged.
The book deals mainly with the period of time between the 40's and the 80's, and I thought it was a pity that it didn't run up to the present day - although this would probably be impossible.
Robb's heart seems to belong chiefly to Naples, and I found the chapters on Neapolitan life perhaps the most interesting.
I very much liked Robb's writing voice. The author clearly had a wide and detailed knowledge of his subject(s), but he never lectured, and managed the very difficult trick of balancing his own experiences and observances with an objective perspective. He was informed, discursive, conversational, intelligent without being stuck-up. And some of his descriptive writing is amazing.
If I were to make any criticisms, it would be that there was just a bit too much detail for my liking, some of it repetitive; and also that although the book's main subject by a country mile is the mafia, the way the book is marketed does not reflect this.
Highly recommended.
(F, 31)
I really enjoyed it. As other reviewers have noted, 'Midnight in Sicily' combines all sorts of aspects of Sicilian life and history, from the development of the fork to domestic violence. It gives a lot of jaw-dropping, eye-opening information about the mafia, and about how Cosa Nostra's influence had spread to politics and the Vatican before its existence was even acknowledged.
The book deals mainly with the period of time between the 40's and the 80's, and I thought it was a pity that it didn't run up to the present day - although this would probably be impossible.
Robb's heart seems to belong chiefly to Naples, and I found the chapters on Neapolitan life perhaps the most interesting.
I very much liked Robb's writing voice. The author clearly had a wide and detailed knowledge of his subject(s), but he never lectured, and managed the very difficult trick of balancing his own experiences and observances with an objective perspective. He was informed, discursive, conversational, intelligent without being stuck-up. And some of his descriptive writing is amazing.
If I were to make any criticisms, it would be that there was just a bit too much detail for my liking, some of it repetitive; and also that although the book's main subject by a country mile is the mafia, the way the book is marketed does not reflect this.
Highly recommended.
(F, 31)
23 of 24 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
I have been living in Sicily for many years and I can vouch for the accuracy of this account. It is all so true, I wish I could have written it myself. But I would never have had the courage. Thank you, Peter Robb, for having put together the pieces of the mosaic for us; the result is a chilling picture indeed.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Recent Sicilian history
A fascinating book based on the author's personal experience and research. As such, it is not strictly chronological but does give a very good background to anyone visiting not... Read more
Published 2 months ago by H. Fraser
5.0 out of 5 stars
outside in
Peter Robb's book is a door of perception into a very particular, complex world that thrives on making itself appear simple. Read more
Published 4 months ago by blackwolfski
4.0 out of 5 stars
Daylight on the mafia
This is a compelling book weaving together Peter Robb's reflections on Sicilian culture (the same as and different from Italian culture), on the island's extraordinary history, and... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Mr. T. Cawkwell
1.0 out of 5 stars
NOT WHAT I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE!
I was very disappointed with this book - it is neither one thing or the other - all over the place with food mixed in with the Mafia amongst other things - nothing seemed to reach... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Mrs. Judith Lugg
1.0 out of 5 stars
A Mixed Bag
Somewhere in this messy book there are two or three good books trying to get out. But they never quite make it. Read more
Published 13 months ago by T. Isitt
3.0 out of 5 stars
midnight in sicily
The contents of this title are largely taken up with recounting a series of murders by the Mafia in Sicily, to such an extent that the subtitle should be re-ordered to read "The... Read more
Published 18 months ago by quisisana
3.0 out of 5 stars
Apocalyptic vision of Sicily deserving consideration and doubt
Robb's book divides its characters into Black hats and White hats. This makes for exciting narrative and strong characterisation but it also leads to broad brush strokes. Read more
Published 21 months ago by John Harpur
5.0 out of 5 stars
Book. Quick delivery, unbeatable price.
Midnight in Sicily is a fascinating insight into the darker side of Italy . It is partly political, partly cultural and sociological. Read more
Published on 28 April 2010 by Mrs. C. Franklin
5.0 out of 5 stars
Somewhat Deeper than the Cover-blurb Sounds
The title is a bit misleading as the book is really about the south of Italy in general, particularly Naples and certain parts of Sicily, the infamous corruption that cripples the... Read more
Published on 22 Dec 2009 by D. Collier
5.0 out of 5 stars
Mafia History
The author of this book masterfully paints a realistic and hard hitting profile of The Mafia and all of its control of both Italian and World wide organised crime. Read more
Published on 8 Jun 2009 by J THOMPSON
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