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Maria Laurino strips away stereotypes and nostalgia to tell the complicated, centuries-long story of the true Italian-American experience. Looking beyond the familiar caricatures fostered by popular culture, she tells the stories of Sicilian workers imported to replace the labor of freed slaves, the grim realities from which most immigrants came, the lynchings of Italian Americans, and the first uses of the word "mafia." Laurino shows how Italian Americans dominated the fishing industry in San Francisco, helped save the city after the Great Fire, and were interned or restricted as "enemy aliens" during World War II. Readers will meet the celebrated NYPD officer who battled "The Black Hand"; sex-symbol Rudolph Valentino, who attracted both adoration and scorn; and Rosina Bonavita, the real-life "Rosie the Riveter." Laurino brings to light the significance of Italian American roots to generation-defining authors and poets like Diane DiPrima, and examines how Italian Americans' focus on family and community has influenced American politics. From anarchist radicals of the early twentieth century to Nancy Pelosi and Andrew Cuomo; from traditional artisans to rebel songsters like Frank Sinatra and Lady Gaga, this book explores and celebrates the rich history and ongoing vitality of Italian American life.

Another entertaining and surprising food history by the scholar who has come to define the discipline, this volume draws readers into the far-flung story of how regional cuisine came to shape a collective Italian identity. From the Romans' encounters with barbarian tribes to the revival and reinvention of local Italian cooking in the twentieth century, Massimo Montanari shows how regional food practices flavored the nation's political and cultural making over time.

Presents a comprehensive study of Italy's role in the European Union and what that country needs to do as a 'medium-sized power' to increase its influence in the EU, chiefly by putting forward well-defined goals and consistent strategies through credible actors

Looking at media coverage of three very prominent murder cases, Murder Made in Italy explores the cultural issues raised by the murders and how they reflect developments in Italian civil society over the past 20 years. Providing detailed descriptions of each murder, investigation, and court case, Ellen Nerenberg addresses the perception of lawlessness in Italy, the country's geography of crime, and the generalized fear for public safety among the Italian population. Nerenberg examines the fictional and nonfictional representations of these crimes through the lenses of moral panic, media spectacle, true crime writing, and the abject body. The worldwide publicity given the recent case of Amanda Knox, the American student tried for murder in a Perugia court, once more drew attention to crime and punishment in Italy and is the subject of the epilogue.