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General Reading
Travel books & Guides
The Rough Guide to Sicily (Robert Andrews, Jules Brown, UK)
In our opinion the best general travel guide to Sicily. Offering details of most of the important sights, from the mosaics of Monreale and the temples of Argrigento to bustling markets in Palermo. Quality development in Sicily is moving so fast that listings are inevitably out of date, still its only major omission is thinkSicily!
On Persephone's Island: A Sicilian Journal (Mary Taylor Simeti, Vintage, UK)
The journal of a year in the life of Mary Taylor Simeti who has lived in Sicily since 1962, her pespective and prose aim to capture the spirit of this mythical land. Mary Taylor Simeti brings to life the sights, sounds and endless contradictions of Sicily, whether she's showing the reader its formidable landscapes, its most colourful religious pageants, or the site where Demeter is said to have witnessed the goddess Persephone's abduction into the Underworld.
Michelin Green Guide: Sicily (Michelin)
Practical and comprehensive, this guide gives a good background on historical and cultural heritage and an up-to-date selection of hotels and restaurants.
Walking in Sicily(A Cicerone Guide) (Gillian Price, Workbase Education Trust)
Gillian Price, author of "Walking in the Dolomites" and "Walking in Tuscany", provides an introduction to Sicily and what to expect if you are exploring the island on foot. The book includes 42 detailed walks, all illustrated with maps.
The Stone Boudoir: In Search of the Hidden Villages of Sicily (Theresa Maggio, Review)
Fascinated by her family's stories of their Sicilian homeland, Theresa Maggio decided to return to her ancestral village of Santa Margherita Belice and to explore the vanishing world they had left behind. She travelled to some of the most isolated villages in the shadows of Mount Etna, where she found an ancient way of life.
History & Archeology
A History of Sicily (M.I. Finley, D. Mack Smith & C.J. Duggan; Chatto and Windus)
An excellent book by three distinguised historians, though unfortunately out of print in English (the Italian version is readily available).
Thousand Years in Sicily: From the Arabs to the Bourbons (Giuseppe Quatriglio, Justin Vitello; Legas, US)
A good account of a thousand years that determined much of what is Sicily today. Unfortunately the translation leaves something to be desired.
The Normans in Sicily (John Julius Norwich, Penguin Books)
This volume is made up of John Julius Norwich's first two works of history published 20 years ago - "The Normans in the South" and "The Kingdom in the Sun". It tells the story of the dazzling Norman kingdom of Sicily founded in the 11th century by an enterprising band aof dventurers from Normandy led by Robert Guiscard. The state they founded was outstanding in mediaeval civilization.
Messages in Mosaic: The Royal Programmes of Norman Sicily, 1130-1187 (Eve Borsook, The Boydell Press)
The Norman kingdom of Sicily, one of the most remarkable manifestations of Norman power in mediaeval Europe, is symbolized for many by the magnificent 12th-century mosaics at Celafu, Palermo and Monreale. This book examines their meaning, and includes general views, ground plans, elevations, and other illustrated details. The text focuses on the significance of the unconventional arrangement of the imagery, with its unusual quantity of accompanying inscriptions which, seen in terms of the monarchy's history, reveal its origins and aspirations.
The Sicilian Vespers: A History of the Mediterranean World in the Later Thirteenth Century (Steven Runciman, Cambridge University Press)
A study of Sicily in the 12th and 13th century, when the island was at the centre of Mediterranean (and European) politics. On 30 March 1282, as the bells of Palermo were ringing for Vespers, the Sicilians, crying 'Death to the French', slaughtered the garrison and administration of their Angevin King. Seen in historical perspective it was not an especially big massacre: the revolt of the long-subjugated Sicilians might seem just another resistance movement. But the events of 1282 came at a crucial moment.
Motya: Unearthing a Lost Civilization (Gaia Servadio, Weidenfeld & Nicholson)
Motya is a tiny island off the coast of Sicily, the site of one the major cities of the Phoenicians, destroyed by the Greeks in 397 BC. Motya describes the Punic civilization and the story of its rediscovery by the English archaeologist Pip Whitaker. Veering from ancient literature to personal experiences it incorporates incidental comments on the character of modern Sicily.
Roger II of Sicily: A Ruler Between East and West (Hubert Houben, et al;
Cambridge University Press, UK)
This is the first work to be devoted specifically to the life and reign of the Norman King Roger II , the founder of the kingdom of Sicily. The book provides a comprehensive introductory narrative of the reign and a clear, up-to-date analysis of its culture and of the development of royal government. The kingdom, created by the Norman Roger of Hautville in the first half of the twelfth century, was a monarchy with highly developed absolutist ideas, an elaborate bureaucracy, a reasonably well-filled treasury, and a mixed cultural heritage reflected by the presence of Arabs and Greeks at court. Based on many years of research in archives and libraries across Europe, the book offers a valuable overview of one of the most striking periods in south Italian and European history.
Frederick II: A Medieval Emperor (David Abulafia, Pimlico, UK)
This biography overturns the myths and reveals Frederick II as a man very much of his time, an emperor whose reign coincided with the great turning-points of the high Middle Ages.
The Archaeology of Ancient Sicily (R.Ross Holloway, Taylor & Francis Books Ltd)
This accessible text provides a comprehensive introduction to the wealth of ancient monuments and artefacts discovered on Sicily. From the Palaeolithic to the later Roman period it explores all the main topics of archaeological interest including: Greek colonization; sanctuaries and burial; the architecture of temples, houses, theatres and military sites; sculpture and cities.
Magna Graecia: Greek Art from Southern Italy and Sicily (Michael Bennet et Al, Hudson Hills Press)
Between the 8th and 6th centuries B.C., Greeks colonized many areas of South Italy and Sicily. This volume presents 82 masterpieces of Greek vase painting and sculpture in terracotta, stone, and bronze from the eight museum collections of South Italy and Sicily. Featured are brief commentaries and colour plates for each object, as well as six essays about various aspects of Greek art and civilization in Magna Graecia (Great Greece). Maps, glossary, and bibliography complete this reference work.
Sicily Before History: An Archaelogical Survey from the Palaeolithic to the Iron Age (Robert Leighton,
This text charts the development of the island's prehistoric cultures from the Palaeolithic onwards, concluding with the Greek and Phoenician settlement in the eighth century BC. Contacts with Italy, nearby satellite islands and the Mycenean world, a capacity for local autonomy and a propensity to generate unique forms of cultural expression, all receive attention. Each chapter highlights the main findings in chronological order, accompanied by a discussion of economic and social themes, informed by approaches to interpretation within the wider spectrum of Mediterranean archaeology.
Culture and Society
Midnight in Sicily (Peter Robb, Vintage, UK)
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.
In Sicily (Norman Lewis, Cape, UK)
A loving profile of an extraordinary country, based on Lewis's sixty-year-long fascination with all things Sicilian. Few places on earth can have escaped the singular eye of Norman Lewis. But always, in the course of his long career, he has come back to Sicily. From his first, wartime visit - to a land untouched since the Middle Ages - through his frequent returns, he has watched the island and its people as they have changed over the years.
The Honoured Society (Norman Lewis, Eland, UK)
This book traces the history of the Sicilian mafia, looks at their feuds, customs, and criminal activities, and assesses the organization's impact on Sicilian society.
Men of Honour: The Truth About the Mafia (Giovanni Falcone, Michelle Padovani; Fourth Estate)
An insight into the ruthless workings of the Mafia, completed only months before the death of the judge Giovanni Falcone.
Bitter Almonds (Maria Grammatico & Mary Taylor Simeti, Vintage Departures, US)
The autobiographic story of Maria Grammatico's childhood in a convent, and the recepies of her famous sweets!
Princes Under the Volcano (Raleigh Trevelyan, Phoenix Press)
Based on unpublished letters, diaries and papers, it is the story of the Anglo-Saxon merchant princes in Sicily who arrived at the time of Nelson. The story begins with the discovery of Marsala wine by Benjamin Ingham, and moves on to the period of the Belle Epoque, when Palermo was at its most flourishing.
Cuisine
<>Sicilian Food: Recipes from Italy's Abundant Isle (Mary Taylor Simeti, Grub Street, UK)
Beginning with the oldest and most elemental components of the Sicilian diet, this book offers a collection of Sicilian recipes, as well as evocations of the dishes' origins: from the culinary innovations of Arab and Norman invaders to the ritual luxuries of Sicily's aristocracy.
The Flavors of Sicily (Anna Tasca Lanza, Alessandro Leone; Ici LA Press, US)
Heart of Sicily: Recipes and Reminiscences of Regaleali, a Country Estate (Anna Tasca Lanza, Cassell Illustrated)
A portrait of a Sicilian country estate which combines original photography with a blend of personal and regional history and a selection of Sicilian recipes. This is a celebration of the changing seasons, the feast day and family anniversaries in Tascas - the old family home.
Sicilian Home Cooking: Family Recipes from Gangivecchio ( Wanda and Giovanna Tornabeneet Al; Alfred A. Knopf, US)
<>Antonio Carluccio's Southern Italian Feast ( Antonio Carluccio, BBC Consumer Publishing, UK)
Antonio Carluccio focuses on the south of Italy. With an emphasis on the rich array of vegetables and olive oils from various regions he shows how healthy a Mediterranean diet can be and how much happiness can come from sharing good food and turning mealtimes into something special.
Cucina Siciliana: Authentic Recipes and Culinary Secrets from Sicily (Clarissa Hayman, Peter Cassidy; Conran Octopus)
Recipes are organized into times of the day, from breakfast and morning snacks, through lunch to afternoon refreshments and evening meals. Easy, stylish and authentic dishes are included and an introductory chapter features information on essential ingredients. This book is not only full of great traditional recipes, but gives an intriguing insight into Sicilian culture.
Novels about Sicily (see the "Sicilian writers" page)
The Silent Duchess (Dacia Maraini, Flamingo)
Set in the mid-18th century, this novel tells of the noble Ucria family, seen through the eyes of the deaf-mute Duchess Marianna. Married at 13 to her uncle, Marianna searches for fulfilment in a society in which women face either endless childbearing or a life of renunciation within a convent.
Bagheria (Dacia Maraini et Al, Peter Owen)
The author visits her Sicilian hometown, Bagheria, in an attempt to make peace with the aristocratic family she has rejected and condemns the destruction of Sicily's artistic and architectural treasures in its transition into a modern city.
The Happy Summer Days: A Sicilian Childhood (Fulco Santostefano della Cerda, Phoenix mass market)
Fulco Santostefano della Cerda, Duke of Verdura, was born in the 1890s at the Villa Niscemi on the outskirts of Palermo. This book, written when he was already a successful jewel designer for Coco Chanel and others, describes his childhood in that beautiful place at the beginning of this century and paints vignettes of a bygone era of luxurious palaces, gardens and parks.
The Godfather (Mario Puzo, Arrow)
The Godfather is the Mafia leader Vito Corleone, a benevolent despot who stops at nothing to gain and hold power. Set in Long Island, Hollywood and Sicily this is a story of a feudal society within society which does not hesitate to consolidate its power.
The Sicilian (Mario Puzo, Arrow)
Sequel to "The Godfather", this describes the ending of Michael Corleone's exile in Sicily, his search for Salvatore Giuliano and his troubles, as he confronts brutal and unfamiliar treacheries in the deceitful society within which he moves.
Note that we possess or have read most but not all these books and many descriptions are taken directly from the Amazon website