Recently, I have started reading Italian books with my students, and it’s been great.
In fact, many of my students are avid readers and told me they would like to read in Italian at some point. Being an avid reader myself, I couldn’t be happier because I never say no to an opportunity to read a book!
I started reading books in Italian with some of my students last year, and it’s been a great journey. I’ll never forget the satisfaction in the eyes of a student when she realized she had already read four books in Italian! It might seem like nothing, but it’s a milestone for someone who had never read a proper Italian book before.
I use graded reading in most of my lessons, and it’s fun, but being able to read a real Italian novel, a book that is not written for students specifically, makes you feel happy and proud and gives your confidence a real boost – which is something we need when we learn a foreign language, right?
The book that my students enjoyed the most so far is La felicità è una storia semplice by Lorenza Gentile, which I mentioned in a previous blog post, but there’s another one that deserves a mention because it has been an interesting and effective read. The book I am referring to is Per dieci minuti by Chiara Gamberale.
This novel ticks all the boxes that make a book a good pick for students: the language is contemporary and not too difficult, the story is clear and easy to follow, there is a good balance between description and dialogue, and it is divided into short chapters. Actually, there are some flashbacks, which can make the story a bit more difficult to follow, but each chapter is focused on a specific story (like episodes in a TV series), and this undoubtedly makes the reading experience less overwhelming.
Per dieci minuti is a partially autobiographical book that tells the story of Chiara, a 40-something who is going through a very hard time in her life: she moved from her childhood home to Rome, a place she doesn’t like, and there she loses her husband first (he has a relationship with another woman) and then her job as a journalist. She is desperate, so her therapist tells her to try doing something new: every day, for a month, she’ll have to spend 10 minutes doing something she has never done in her life.
Each chapter of the book describes one day in that program, focusing on the activity she decides to do for 10 minutes. Simultaneously, we also follow Chiara’s life, her relationship with her husband, and with Ato, a young orphan from Eritrea who spends time with her on the weekends. Every chapter is an opportunity for Chiara to do something new and find a different perspective to look at her life and actions.
The challenge will force Chiara to learn things about herself and the people around her, and will help her see her life more clearly, gaining a newfound confidence in herself and becoming a stronger and more balanced woman. I wouldn’t say it is one of my most favorite books, but I enjoyed reading it and liked seeing how Chiara’s perspective on life changed after opening herself up to new experiences and letting new people into her life. Also, here is an IG reel where I talk about the book (in Italian).
To make the reading experience richer, there is also a movie based on the book. The movie is titled Dieci minuti and is available on Netflix (in Italy). Just like the book, it tells the story of a woman (Bianca) who suffers from depression and is advised by her therapist to devote 10 minutes of each day for a month to experience something new. Even though the movie differs from the book in terms of characters and storylines, it is enjoyable to watch and an interesting way of telling a similar story. Here is the trailer, in case you want to check it out.
Do you read books in Italian? If so, what’s your favorite?
Are you looking for an Italian practice book that can help you work on your language skills in a fun and relaxed way? Well, I can recommend two! Un’estate al lago and Andiamo al mare are two practice books I wrote to help B1-B2 students practice Italian grammar, listening, reading comprehension, and writing while reading a fun story and learning more about Italian pop culture.
Leave a Reply