Jane’s Guide to Books Set In Italy
- alisonchino
- May 20
- 4 min read
Italy Books
One of the best way to visit a country is to do so through the eyes of someone else. When I can’t be in Italy, the next best thing is to be reading a book about Bella Italia!
Reading does for your brain what exercise does for your body. You open your mind to new places and people through getting lost in a story.
So to help you get started on your virtual trip to Italy, here’s a list of 20 books that will transport you to my favorite country!
10 Fiction Books Set in Italy
The Betrothed
by Alessandro Manzoni
A classic Italian love story set in 1628 Lombardy. Renzo and Lucia are a young couple whose thwarted love perseveres through the years.
The Shape of Water
by Andrea Camilleri
If you enjoy crime novels, Andrea Camilleri has written lots of them set in Italy. This is the first book in the Inspector Montalbano series, which is set predominantly in Sicily.
A Room with a View
by E.M. Forster
Ranked widely as one of the best English novels of the 20th-century, A Room with a View finds a young woman traveling to Italy to experience a major cultural change as she decides between following her family’s wishes or her own.
My Brilliant Friend
by Elena Ferrante
This book can be a slow burn, but it is one of the most popular books set in Italy (also a TV series!) Lila and Elena are two friends in Naples, and their story spans a friendship that starts in elementary school and continues over 60 years.
The Glassblower Of Murano
by Marina Fiorato
Set in Venice in 1681, a renowned glassblower discloses his trade secrets to Louis XIV of France in order to protect his daughter. Then the story jumps to the present day where Leonora Manin runs off to Italy.
Beneath a Scarlet Sky
by Mark Sullivan
Based on a true story, this historical fiction novel follows Pino Lella, a young man from Milan, as he enlists in the German army during World War 2, but secretly uses his position to spy for the Allies.
The Marriage Portrait
by Maggie O’Farrell
Lucrezia de’ Medici is a young duchess in Renaissance Italy. O’Farrell’s powerful storytelling vividly depicts a resilient woman’s struggle for identity and independence.
Acqua Alta
by Donna Leon
Another one for mystery lovers! This is from the bestselling Commissario Brunetti series. Acqua Alta means high waters as the canals of Venice are practically a character in this murder mystery.
Murder in Tuscany
by T.A. Williams
This is a gripping murder mystery set in a villa In Tuscany’s picturesque hills, at a writing retreat!
From Sand and Ash
by Amy Harmon
Set in Italy in 1943, this historical fiction novel is the story of forbidden love between Eva, who is Jewish and Angelo, who is Catholic.
10 Nonfiction Books about Italy
The House of Medici: Its Rise and Fall
by Christopher Hibbert
This is the story of the powerful Medicis, the famous Italian merchant family who influenced so much of Florence and Tuscany throughout the Renaissance. If you read this book before you visit Tuscany, you will recognize so much of the art and architecture as tracing back to this story.
Brunelleschi’s Dome
by Ross King
The Duomo in Florence is the largest in the world, and this is the story of its medieval designer, Fillipo Brunelleschi, who accomplished the impossible.
Eat Pray Love
by Elizabeth Gilbert
Follow along as a 34-year-old embarks on a self-discovery trip around the world after her divorce. Her journey begins in Italy.
Pasta, Pane, Vino
by Matt Goulding
If you are a foodie, you will especially enjoy this culinary tour of Italy. You’ll be ready to taste all the regional Italian foods and traditional dishes that he delightfully describes. Plus he tells the stories of the artisans and Italian grandmothers who feed Italy.
In Other Words
by Jhumpa Lahiri
A memoir about learning Italian. If you’ve ever struggled to learn a foreign language, you will appreciate this journey of falling in love with Italy so much that you would move there to learn the language.
Under the Tuscan Sun
by Frances Mayes
On a whim, Mayes decides to restore an old villa, Bramasole, in the Tuscan countryside of Cortona. She’ll have you wishing you could drop everything and move to Tuscany.
Italian Neighbors
by Tim Parks
Parks recounts his first year in Montecchio, in the north of Italy. He explores the cultural differences between Italy and the United Kingdom.
Return To Glow: A Pilgrimage of Transformation in Italy
by Chandi Wyant
This author’s world implodes in the wake of a divorce and traumatic illness. Determined to embrace life by following her heart, she sets out on Italy’s historic pilgrimage route, the Via Francigena.
The City of Falling Angels
by John Berendt
A bestselling book that focuses on Venice in the aftermath of the Fenice Opera House fire. Berendt investigates the truth behind the incident, delving into the city’s art, architecture, and well-known families. Berendt (who also wrote Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil) has a gift for making nonfiction feel like a novel.
La Bella Figura
by Beppe Severgnini
So many books about Italy involve a foreigner moving abroad, but in this excellent book about Italian culture, Severgnini travels around to show the difference between tourists’ romanticized vision of Italy and the way the Italians view their homeland.
There you have it! A list that should keep you busy as an armchair traveler to Italy for a while! When you finish reading and you're ready to pack your bags for Italy, you can start your journey by coming on retreat with me!
