7 Books Like Italian Fever

I don’t normally gravitate to epistolary novels – those told exclusively through letters – but the author brings it off brilliantly here, somehow making the shifting points of view of commonly viewed events feel like the act of viewing – and arguing about art itself. High minded, yes, but the author then puts such arguments to work to solve a mystery of a murdered artist and a lost painting in sixteenth century Florence. It’s a blast, with plots, counter-plots, plot twists…the story never plods. Narrators span the spectrum from royalty to raggedy wretches. There is a witty, irreverent side to this, which is refreshing considering it takes place during the Renaissance, a time of politics and intrigues along with ruffles,royalty and formality. The author winks at the reader, and we smile.

I love a book that gives me a fresh, lively perspective on a subject I care a lot about. Donna Russo does that here, with this multi-p.o.v. portrait of the artist over the years – as a young-old-middle aged genius. Van Gogh! What is it about this guy that makes him so fascinating? It’s more than the brilliant, revolutionary artwork. It’s more than the partially severed ear, the madness that drove him. It’s his relentless work ethic, fearless creativity and stormy relationships – with his brother Theo and artist-sometimes friend, Paul Gaugin. Each of the sections is narrated by a woman in his life: his mother, a nurse, a prostitute, and his brother’s wife. It’s partially founded on Van Gogh’s eloquent correspondence with his brother.

Small Island introduced me to the world of the Windrush generation, the Caribbean immigrants into Britain in the 1940s and subsequently. It detailed, in a sympathetic but unflinching way, the prejudices and difficulties faced by Black immigrants. Some of the characters were memorable, and the writing was original and emotional. The book was fully deserving of all the awards it received on publication.

I often find trauma novels hard to stomach. Reading THE KNOWN WORLD, which is a heartbreaking plunge into life during slavery in one Virginia county, I was amazed by how Edward P. Jones gave me the full experience of pointless suffering, outright maliciousness, slow despair, and intergenerational trauma while also caring for my tender heart. How did he manage it? I have five theories.

First, every character in this book, from those who kill others for fun to the Black slave owners to the punitive Black overseers to the good white sheriff to the supposedly insane older woman--every person is so complex and so much a victim of the institution of slavery, I began to feel my compassion accumulating as the story got violent. How remarkable!

Second, the only clear source of evil in this book is the social institution of slavery. Without the ability to point fingers at anyone,… show more.

Kindred shocked me, and in both good and bad ways. I knew it was going to be a compelling story, but once I got into it was stunningly surprised by the timeline shifts and various lens scopes it relays. Octavia's a brilliant storyteller.

A thin, little book and a true masterpiece!

Narrated by Manon Gaudet, the mistress of an 1830s plantation outside New Orleans, the novel forced me to adopt the perspective of a person who is both oppressed, as a woman in the 19th century, and oppressor, as a slave-owner, who is keenly observant and stunningly blind. Manon’s body-servant, Sarah, has given birth to a deaf wild-child who Manon cannot ignore, given his striking resemblance to her own husband. Manon, who is obsessed with Sarah too, is incapable of recognizing her as someone being victimized by her husband. She only sees a rival.

I teach Property in my classes. My students hate Manon. They also love the book!

I came to Toni Morrison a little late. This was in the 1980s, after she’d won the Pulitzer. I read Song of Solomon first, upon the recommendation of a friend who told me he couldn’t read the end of the novel without bursting into tears. Next, Beloved: I was so awed that I reread it five times in a row!

At that point, I realized that I needed to circle back and start with her first books. The Bluest Eye and Sula both stunned me.

Then came Tar Baby. I immediately understood it to be different from the others. The novel has significant, primary characters who are white. In the other early novels, white characters might be present, but they are few and very secondary.

Six people live in relative luxury on a Caribbean island. Yet, despite themselves, their racial assumptions inform how they view and treat one… show more.