The Stone Boudoir: Travels Through the Hidden Villages of Sicily [Paperback]

At the start of the 20th century, Maggio's grandparents immigrated to America from Santa Margherita Belice, a small Sicilian mountain town. In 1973, Maggio makes her way to Sicily for her first visit. She finds the island so alluring that she returns for many more visits.

Not only does Maggio visit her grandparents' hometown, she goes further to explore other Sicilian towns. The writer describes them as, "Tiny jewels, remote and isolated, these are places tourists seldom see. But they are the island's hidden treasure and the secret spring of Sicilian endurance." After reading THE STONE BOUDOIR, I have to agree - what riches these places and people have to offer, indeed!

Maggio's descriptions of these villages are priceless - like her first visit to Polizzi Generosa, a town on the peak of the Madonie Mountain in north-central Sicily or sleeping in a cave home in Sperlinga, an ancient mountain town in Sicily's center. But it is the natives and their stories that make up the most pleasurable part of the book. My top three favorite stories are of Signora Maria, a 71-year-old woman with an amazing childhood who liked to memorize and could still recite folk poems by heart; Enza Dolce who has accomplished many firsts as a single woman in Sicily despite adversity and Nunzio Putrino, an old Sicilian bagpiper who met and wooed his wife over his music-playing without saying a word.

There's an excellent chapter on the 1968 earthquake that affected many of the towns. Margherita Cacioppo, who was nine when the earthquake occurred, shares her account. The images of what happened during the earthquake and what her family did to survive are very vivid.

There are many more fantastic stories, each one is unique but all contain the similar characteristic trait of a resilient people.

There are no photos in the book but you can find a nice collection highlighted on the writer's web site...Some of my favorites are: Maletto Bagpipes, A Sperlinga Cave dweller, Love on a Plate, The Stone Boudoir, Sheep Sleep in Palaces, Locati Wash on Line and many more. The photos are exactly the way I imagined them from Maggio's narrations. But is it definitely nice to see the real thing.

Reading THE STONE BOUDOIR is like having a cup of coffee/cappuccino/espresso/ tea (insert your beverage of choice) with a friend as she shares, with you, stories about her visit to a special place. What a wonderful look at Sicily and its people. You won't regret reading this book.

Fafa Demasio

She is well-suited to play this dual role because of her intimate understanding of local customs and her ability to listen to the locals. Listening to "old-timers" and allowing them to tell their stories about "the way it used to be" is a lost art; very few have the patience or interest to do that anymore. Luckily, Maggio had the patience, interest and courage to talk with many locals--young & old--from numerous villages, and presents what she learned quite eloquently. Her descriptions of many of the villages are enough to strike up wanderlust in any reader!

There are some flaws, however. First, a line drawing map of Sicily showing the location of the villages would have been nice. Likewise, a few photos of the villagers and/or villages (even if not in color) would have added greatly to the overall effect of her writing. Also, when she attempts to write about the history of certain locales, it comes across as a passage form a history text (I happen to be a historian, so I'm familiar with historical texts). In these few parts, her writing becomes more bland & structured; a big contrast to the rest of the book which has a more fluid writing style. Believe it or not, it IS possible to present history in a fluid writing style. My final complaint with this otherwise good book is that some of the chapters are disjointed. Some chapters flow beautifully together, others just don't. Also, it is sometimes difficult to determine during which of her many trips she visited some villages. You may ask, "Does it really matter?" In a way it does because then you also know in what stage of life she was in, what she already had visited/knew, what was the purpose of her visit, etc.

Other than these few flaws, however, "The Stone Boudoir" was an enjoyable and easy read. Certainly recommended to everyone and anyone interested in Italy and in travel, in general. I walked away with a greater appreciation of the "hidden villages of Sicily", and the importance of immersing oneself in local culture whenever possible.