Instantly Italy

Italian speaking practice and grammar tutoring

Italians You Should Know: Libereso Guglielmi, the gardener of Italo Calvino

This blog post has an Italian version and an audio version too. You can find them in Your Italian Toolbox, a section of Instantly Italy where you’ll find Italian learning materials. You can get access to it by subscribing here.

How many important Italians do you know?

I bet you know a lot of them! Lots of Italians – like Andrea Bocelli, Sophia Loren, and Federico Fellini, just to name the first three that come to my mind – are famous all over the world. But there are a lot of lesser-known Italians that have done incredible things in their lives and that are definitely worth knowing.

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Italian Words That Come From Literature – Part 2: Adjectives

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It’s time for another round of Italian words that come from literature. 

Two weeks ago I wrote a blog post focusing on the Italian nouns that derive from books and theatre plays, today I am exploring the same topic but with a focus on adjectives.

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How To Enjoy Learning A Language Again (After Studying It For A Long Time)

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Learning a foreign language is a very long process. 

Fluency in a foreign language doesn’t happen overnight, unfortunately, but it takes years and years. In most cases, it takes all your life to master a language, and actually, that process never ends.

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[Italian Books] The Garden of Monsters by Lorenza Pieri: A Novel About Life, Human Relationships and A Beautiful Garden

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As you may already know, I am always on the hunt for good Italian books. 

This should be a very easy and entertaining task because I really love books but I have made this task a bit more difficult for myself because I want to select good Italian books that have an English translation as well.

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[Italian Books] The Chimera by Sebastiano Vassalli, a Story of Witchcraft and Life in 17th-Century Rural Italy

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I am a book hoarder, I have to admit it.

One of my favorite pastimes is browsing books in a bookstore and every time I do so it is really hard for me not to bring a book home.

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[Italian Books] Ties by Domenico Starnone

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I didn’t know much about this book when I started reading it.

Actually, I did this on purpose. I had read so many positive comments about the book that I decided to give it a go without doing much research about it. I just wanted to dive in and enjoy it. And that’s exactly what happened!

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Dive Into Egyptian Ancient History In Turin: A Visit To The Museo Egizio

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I have never been a big fan of the Museo Egizio in Turin, I have to admit it. 

Unlike many other kids in elementary school, I was not fascinated by Egyptian ancient history and culture, so the mandatory visit at the Museo Egizio (Egyptian Museum) was a bit boring for me. I could say that my teacher was not good at sparking my interest in the topic, while at the museum, but probably I was just not paying attention and only thinking about what we would do next.

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Some of my favorite Italian classic novels (available in English too)

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“Can you recommend some good Italian books?” is one of the questions I get asked the most. 

Reading is one of my most favorite things in life, so this question always makes me really happy. I try to write about books as much as I can, here on my blog, and I am always looking for interesting reads to suggest you.

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Ferrania: A Now Forgotten Company That Has Made Italian History

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For a while in my life, I have been part of Italian history without fully realizing it.

Speaking of work, I have lived two very different lives. Before doing what I currently do, which is running this website and working freelance as a translator, I have worked for some years in the corporate world.

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