Siciliana

The world probably knows Sicily for all the wrong reasons, but what if someone told you that Sicily is not this monotonous and poor concept presented in the media? What if they told you it is a place of abundant and colorful history and culture, the beauty that is just breathtaking? What if they told you a certain story, one of sacrifice of that tormented land beneath a volcano; the war, the sorrow, the desperation that birthed Siciliana? Well, here, listen to the story of one Aetna Vespiri, of a rise against the oppressor, of the fuming lava in the belly of Etna. Listen to the story of sacrifice, love, determination, rage, loss - and home.

Ever since the start of this year, I've been in this sort of a slump, feeling really unmotivated and kind of lazy, but I am very glad I had this book to get me out of it. It took me a while to read it, but I enjoyed every bit of it. The power, the love, the emotion that erupts from these pages was absolutely captivating. I know the year has just begun, but I don't know if I'll be able to find another one like this anytime soon. It was just beautiful! In the story of war the author managed to insert the elements of a rich culture, history, cuisine, the environment and the language. I speak Italian, but I appreciated the Sicilian dialect used in the book, I feel like it showed that Sicily is first Sicilian and that Italian. It was a special nod to their identity.
I feel like my words will never fully present the magic of this book, so just, as soon as you can, go read it! :)

On Easter Monday (30 March) 1282, at the Church of the Holy Spirit just outside Palermo, at evening prayer (vespers), a Frenchman harassed a Sicilian woman. Accounts differ as to what the harassment entailed, who the woman was, and who the Frenchman was. Fed up with years of oppression, insolence and brutality, the cry went up - "moranu li Francis" - death to the French!. This single event led to the massacre of four thousand French men and women within twenty four hours, and possibly as many as thirteen thousand over the course of the next six weeks. The government of Charles lost control of the island - and the War of the Sicilian Vespers was underway.

Treviso provides an engaging and at times, fraught narrative, as the players on the chessboard are being slowly and carefully positioned for the impending finale.

As an avid student of Sicilian history, I welcomed this fictional account of one of many a major turning point the history of this island nation.