Gina Buonaguro and Janice Kirk, authors

Mystery plane depicted in our novel Ciao Bella stalked Italian countryside during World War II

2012-01-02T17:15:00.000-05:00

“Pippo flew over Venice every afternoon at around three o’clock,” Anna Friedenberg remembers. Now a resident of Toronto, Friedenberg was only four years old when she lived in German-occupied Venice, yet she still has memories of the plane known as Pippo. “He never machine-gunned Venice or Mestre or Maghera,” she says, naming two nearby industrial towns. “And he didn’t frighten us. He was simply a presence, a fact of life. We thought he was a reconnaissance plane flown by the Allies.”

Although Pippo survives in the oral tradition of Northern Italy, he is little acknowledged in official histories of the war. In fact, no one even seems to know how Pippo acquired his name. One theory suggests it was a play on the Italian moniker for Disney’s Goofy character. Alternatively, it could have been based on the pip-pip sounds he made as he flew overhead. The silly name makes sense to Friedenberg. “We sometimes even called him Pippino(Little Pippo),” she says, using the diminutive. “He wasn’t frightening to us, so why else choose such a name?”

However, not everyone thought of Pippo as a friendly presence. According to Poldo Giro, who lives in the Euganean Hills west of Venice, Pippo was feared by all. Flying only at night, thus only heard but never seen, it was essential to block the lights in your house or Pippo might bomb it. He was rumoured to drop exploding pens or so-called butterfly bombs. He was blamed with strafing the fields and roads with gunfire. And naughty children were sometimes warned: Be good or Pippo will come and get you.

Sometimes Pippo’s identity seems to have been determined by one’s political allegiances. If you were faithful to the Fascists, Pippo was certainly an Allied plane. If you were a supporter of the Allies, the plane was German or maybe even Italian. In any case, it is evident from at least one newspaper of the era that the Fascists used it as a propaganda tool to turn ordinary civilians against the Allies. But whether friend or enemy, Pippo was always he – the plane and pilot a single entity – flying tirelessly all night long over German-occupied Northern Italy.

As it turns out, Friedenberg and her fellow Venetians were probably right when they believed Pippo to be a reconnaissance plane. According to research by historian Alan R. Perry, Pippo was almost certainly a plane, or rather planes, flown by the British Royal Air Force. Unaware of the fears and myths they were generating on the ground, the pilots flew tactical night missions throughout Northern Italy to survey and intervene in German troop movements. The plane itself was most likely a Mosquito, famed for its distinctive buzz, many of which were built during the war by de Havilland Canada at Downsview Airfield (now Park) right here in Toronto.

To a four-year old girl forced to flee Venice after Italy allied with the Nazis in 1943 because her father was Jewish, Pippo was just what she knew. “Pippo was like a joke,” says Friedenberg. “He would come and visit.” She admits though that her memory may be hazy. “I was so young. It was a vague idea. It is like an urban legend. But it is real history.”

These stories are too good to be lost, so if you have any memories of Pippo, please email janiceandgina @ hotmail.com or post here.

Holiday Greetings from Gina & Janice

2011-11-28T14:05:00.001-05:00

Dear Friends:

Please find below the recently “discovered” letter from the lost correspondence of The Sidewalk Artist's intrepid travel writer Miss Mildred Mercy.

As you delve into your holiday shopping, please consider helping those less fortunate. For example, one of Plan Canada’s Gifts of Hopes is a Library in a Box for Haiti. An entire library for only $60!

Best wishes for the Holidays and New Year!
Gina Buonaguro and Janice Kirk

Hotel Raphael, Rome
Christmas Eve, 1971

Dear Gentle Friends,
It never snows in Rome, my friend the Tuscan vintner told me. Those of you who read my travelogue On the Trail of the Writer in Europe: An American Woman's Pilgrimage will remember the vintner as the man who swept me most chivalrously away on his motor scooter as I waited in vain for a local bus. Having wooed him these past three Christmases with hand-knit socks and my very famous fruit cake, I was delighted when at last he succumbed (no doubt under the influence of the generous quantity of rum with which I spiked last year’s sweet offering) and invited me to meet him here in the Eternal City. And while I have not had a Christmas without snow in all my eighty-four years of living in North Dakota, it is a small price to pay to be here again in Italy with my vintner, who is at this very moment out purchasing a copy of that most venerable of American Christmas traditions, “’Twas the Night Before Christmas,” spotted before breakfast in the window of an English-language bookshop.

What can I say about this city that I did not already cover in my book of travels? Dickens was here; Hawthorne came too. My vintner and I viewed St. Peter’s Square with Mark Twain’s colorful observations as our guide, though his myriad of similes designed to impress upon us the Basilica’s size and majesty (The Capitol in Washington, Niagara Falls, et cetera) failed us both miserably. The expenditure on this vast project may have indeed sparked the Reformation, but on this day in the year of our Lord 1971, between the glorious music in the square and the life-size manger that awaits the solemn placing of the Christ Child this very eve, no jaded soul - least of all this one - could hope to remain unmoved!

Rome, as I previously reported, was also a favorite haunt of the Romantics. Liszt, Byron, Shelley, Keats – all came to sigh their melancholic ways through the Roman Forum, the Circus Maximus, the Colosseum. Indeed, both Shelley and Keats are buried here, and my vintner and I have visited their tombs – a damp affair that inflicted upon us both simultaneous bouts of sciatica that could only be cured with a great deal of my friend’s wine (he never travels with less than a case). It was the ruinous damp too that was the nemesis of that great son of Rome, the Renaissance painter Raphael. There has always been much speculation about the identity of Raphael’s great love. The glory at present is bestowed upon a humble baker’s daughter, and while I am sure this honor is quite misplaced, I shall have to leave it up to some future author or authors cleverer than myself to uncover the truth of that mysterious affair!

As I look out the window now into the Roman night, I see my vintner friend striding down the street toward the hotel, a parcel wrapped in brown paper under his arm, no doubt proof of a successful excursion. My, what a handsome visage he has! Such a fine mustache and such jolly dark eyes… But goodness! What is this I see? Could it really be? It is! It’s snowing! What complete and utter bliss!

And so it is here, dear readers, I must leave you, for there are snow angels to be made and a Christmas tale to be read aloud before the fire – but I will not rush off before wishing you all courage and love for the holidays and the coming new year!

Fondest regards,
Miss Mildred Mercy

P.S. In the summer, my vintner promises to take me to the Euganean Hills of Northern Italy, where the sonneteer Petrarch spent his final years loving his Laura to the last. I shall report then of my travels there. Until then, we will spend the next few months in Tuscany – oh lucky me!

What We're Reading - Part II

2011-11-18T14:30:00.000-05:00

Falling for Rain is now available as an ebook beyond Amazon's Kindle - and at a reduced price until December 18! Just enter coupon code MJ99M here.

***

And now it’s Gina’s turn to discuss her bedside reading pile.

Having just finished rereading Pride & Prejudice for my book club, I eagerly await our next choices, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, Little Bee by Chris Cleave, and Master Pip by Lloyd Jones. I don’t know much about any, so upon looking them up, I see that the first is a young adult novel set in Nazi Germany, the second is about a Nigerian orphan and a British couple, and the third is a New Zealand coming-of-age story. All come highly recommended. One of the best things about a book club for me is reading things I wouldn't have thought to choose on my own.

Middlemarch by George Eliot also sits upon the stack, a recommendation from a book club friend. I’m always a sucker for a classic and can’t believe I’ve never read this one. I’ve read lots of Jane Austen and Henry James - clearly it’s time for some Eliot.

But first I must finish all the books I’m halfway through. Three are work related. The first is Vanished Smile, highly recommended by Janice . The second and third are rereadings of a few key chapters of Renaissance Rome by Peter Partner and Michelangelo and The Pope's Ceiling by Ross King. Both are must reads for anyone interested in the time period.

Right after that I need to complete the second half of Steven Heighton’s Every Lost Country. I was greatly enjoying this novel by a Kingston, ON author that I know slightly and Janice knows better. Steven is originally a poet, and those skills are directly evident in his novels. This is a contemporary tale based on a true story that takes place on the border between Tibet and China. The tagline asks, “When is it acceptable to be a bystander, and when do life and loyalty demand more?” An intriguing question, to be sure. (I also greatly enjoyed Heighton's Afterlands, also based on a true story.)

Then comes Race Traitor by Elisa Hategan. A fellow Ontario author, I have gotten to know her through social networking. It’s about a runaway teenager who belongs to a paramilitary group that she later spies on - sounds extremely gripping.

After that, if I don’t get interrupted by other books begging to be read, comes a beautifully bound first edition of Louis Auchincloss’s Exit Lady Masham, inherited by my husband from a dear friend who died a decade ago.

Finally, The Last Concubine by Lesley Downer, a gift from our agent, another of his authors.

All this is what is preventing me from getting an ereader! With so many hard-copy books to read, how can I yet justify the transition?

Berlusconi reviews our forthcoming novel as final act as Italian Prime Minister

2011-11-09T10:10:00.001-05:00

Dear Mr. Berlusconi,

We know this has been a busy time for you, what with the mobs in the street demanding your resignation and the IMF your head on a platter, not to mention your own legal problems with pretty dancing girls. So we understand you might think us a little crazy for suggesting you take time out to read our forthcoming novel, The Wolves of St. Peter’s. But we think our book could give you a much-needed distraction – not only because it's a good read but also because “The Turk,” suspect numero uno in the murder of the unfortunate Marigold Madonna, was inspired by none other than you!

Why you, you may ask? Well, as you know, there's nothing like a scandal to market one’s book, as Dan Brown discovered with The Da Vinci Code. Our novel will probably annoy the Vatican – we can just imagine the tsk, tsking over our portrayal of Pope Julius II (all rooted in fact, as a matter of fact). But annoying the Vatican has been done before (not to mention they probably have a considerable backlog of materials just waiting for their seal of disapproval). Besides, we’re actually rather nice and don’t really enjoy annoying people too much, which is why we think you’ll like The Turk. Despite his rather unsavory side, he's pretty fun and has become one of our all-time favorite characters.

In fact, it would be doing us a big favor if you could mention him in a news conference or two. And if it would help, we could send you a list of publications for you to send your endorsement to – The New York Times would be a good start. But please do it soon – even as we write this, the wolves are circling your presidential palace!

We can even help by preparing your endorsement. How about something like:

Great Book! Couldn’t put it down. Merkel and Sarkozy called three times demanding I squeeze more blood from a stone, but I told them to get a life and go read The Wolves of St. Peter’s. The authors (two charming Canadian ladies) tell me they based the character of The Turk on me. Even called him Silvio (that’s my first name: Silvio Berlusconi). Don’t see it myself. That painter, Michelangelo, no it was Raphael, called The Turk “the most cheerfully evil man” he’d ever met. I tell you, Raphael better be careful in the future or I’ll paint moustaches on all those pretty Madonnas of his! And that little upstart from Florence, Francesco, said I… I mean The Turk… looked like that fat old bullfrog from the fairytale…. And what was with the guy who thought he was a bat? But I did like the bunga bunga, and oh, la, la, that Calendula – what a looker! Shame what happened to her. And the ending! How shocking! I never guessed who the murderer was. Well, I won't spoil the surprise. You'll just have to wait until it's published and read it for yourselves.

Will that do? We really do appreciate you doing this. In the meantime, good luck with all your problems!

And one more thing. You really must do something about Pompeii. Another wall came down last week, and we don’t want our children to know about Italy’s historic treasures from books alone.

Sincerely, Janice Kirk & Gina Buonaguro

PS - We know you were probably anxiously awaiting Gina's book recommendations, but when we heard you were about to resign, we just had to get this out to you.

What's We're Reading - Part I

2011-10-24T10:34:00.001-04:00

At a dinner party recently, we guests compared the stacks of books threatening to tumble from our bedside tables and crush us in our sleep, an interesting discussion that had us taking out pencils and writing down new titles to add to our leaning book towers. This week we learn the contents of Janice's night table and next time its Gina's turn.

So teetering on the top of the pile is Vanished Smile: The Mysterious Theft of the Mona Lisa by R.A. Scotti (accumulated library fines: $2.30). It wasn't until I started reading this book that I learned it was the 100th anniversary of the theft. I had no idea what a catalyst this was in the modern era or that Picasso was a prime suspect. This is my third book by R.A. Scotti this year. I originally picked up Basilica: The Splendor and the Scandal: Building St. Peter's on the building on St. Peter's as research for The Wolves of St. Peter's. Soon I was utterly enthralled (not to mention completely in awe of her writing). Sudden Sea: The Great Hurricane of 1938 opens with Katherine Hepburn waving goodbye to her then-boyfriend Howard Hughes as he flies overhead on his transatlantic flight. When we catch up with her later that afternoon, she is crawling across the sand dunes watching her house blow out to sea. I loved all three of these books but fear that Scotti is such a master storyteller she has all but rendered fiction obsolete.

Next: Henning Mankell's first two Wallander novels. My son bought these for me after we watched the beautifully filmed BBC adaptations starring Kenneth Branagh as Kurt Wallander. I confess to being stuck midway through the second novel. Branagh was completely riveting as the conflicted Wallander, and for me the character on the page seems a little pale in comparison. I also felt Wallander's daughter had less of a presence in the books while their relationship was such a compelling part of the TV series. That said, Mankell is a master of dialogue (I wasn't surprised to learn he is a playwright), and I only wish I had read the books first.

Halfway down under the French/English dictionary is the controversial Infidel by Ayaan Hirst Ali, a book that seems important to read but maybe not before bed. I must remember to move it to the stack beside my reading chair in the living room which teeters no less precariously.

Bad Science by doctor/science writer/Guardian columnist Ben Goldacre may be best described by the chapter heading "Why Clever People Believe Stupid Things." As someone who has clung onto her own share of stupid ideas, I find this book humbling and informative. It has also had an influence on the creation of our Wolves' characters Francesco, Michelangelo, and Raphael. "It's all grist for the mill," Gina and I are fond of saying, and it is amazing what can worm its way into a story.

Almost there. The Pianist's Problems: A Modern Approach to Efficient Practice and Musicianly Performance by William S. Newman is next. This is a book I read every few years in hopes of gleaning new words of wisdom. It has not failed me on this reading, but I won't bore you with the details. I'm only being slightly facetious when I say I play the piano because it makes writing look easy.

At the bottom of the stack providing a somewhat slippery foundation are a half-dozen back issues of BBC Music Magazine, bedside porn for classical music lovers. Nothing like a review of the latest recordings of Liszt's piano sonata to calm those 3 am anxiety attacks.

And soon to join the pile: Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre, a book I always follow up with Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys, who gives the woman in the attic her own story.

I am very excited too about a new biography of Caravaggio by Andrew Graham-Dixon as well as Better Angels of Our Nature by Steven Pinker, who argues the world has become less violent over time, a theory Gina and I have little trouble believing after immersing ourselves in the history of Renaissance Rome for the two years we've been working on The Wolves of St. Peter's. The perfect companion for Pinker's book could very well be Ovid's Tristia poems, which he wrote in his final years of exile on the shores of the Black Sea, but that will have to wait until being released from the night table of one of my fellow dinner guests.

Read for 24 hours and win books (including ours of course!)

2011-10-20T13:46:00.001-04:00

Like free books? Stay up late reading anyway? Looking for something to do on a blustery autumn weekend? Then read to win!

We have donated a copy each of The Sidewalk Artist and Ciao Bella to Dewey's Readathon.

All you need to do is blog about your reading during the readathon to be held this Saturday October 22 for a chance to win these and other books.

If you don't have a blog, you can still participate.

Find out more about and sign up for Dewey's Readathon here.

(Wondering what to read next? Our next post will contain book selections from Janice's bedside table.)

Titling a Book is Not for Sissies – Part II

2011-10-13T13:26:00.001-04:00

Ciao Bella also went through multiple titles. Our first and favourite was Summer of Grace. It worked on so many levels, not just that our main character's name was Grace (also Graziella). For several reasons, our agent and editor didn't like this. And so it was back to the drawing board.

Our next favourite title was The Resistance Fighter's Wife. That too was rejected as being too similar to title trends out there (The Memory Keeper's Daughter, et al). (The Partisan's Wife would have been appropriate, except that in North America partisan refers to political differences. Janice's son thought this would be a perfect title for a Washington, D.C. thriller.)

Then we hit upon Bella Ciao, as in the famous resistance song. However, as we tested it out verbally on people, they kept looking at us blankly, since they didn't recognize the expression. A few even thought it was the name of a Chinese woman (Bella Chow), perhaps the sister of Olivia Chow, a Canadian politician from Toronto! And so we reversed the order to the more familiar Ciao Bella, which also reflected the book's often bittersweet tone.

Here's a list of the rejects, as you'll see much longer than The Sidewalk Artist's!

After the War Came Summer
After the War Came a Soldier
After the War a Soldier Came
After the War
After the War, Summer Came
The Summer After
And Then Came Summer
A Distant Land
Where Angels Fear
The Tread of an Angel
Song for a Summer's Day
A Little Bit of Grace
The Light of the Hazy Moon
The Light of the Moon
The Strength of a Cloud
Returning from War
Bel Tempo
Mal Tempo
The Botanist's Daughter
The Monk's Wife
The Priest's Wife
Love in the Euganean Hills
The Resistance Fighter's Widow
The Widow
The Summer after the War
Everything in the Universe
A State of Grace
Starry, Starry Night
The Veneto Sun
A Little Bit of Italian Sun
A Bit of Italian Sun
The Light over the Alps
Evening over the Alps
As Long as Ugo Came Home
Darkness Fell with the Rain
Improvisation
Sweeter than Love
Seen from the Moon
On Loan from the Gods
Goodbye Sweetheart
The Sound of Bells
Into the Beautiful
The Summer After the War
An Italian Rhapsody
Becoming Graziella (or Growing into Graziella)
Grace's Path
A Little Bit of Grace
Grace on the Mountain
Grace in Italy
To Love, To Lose
Loving Graziella
That Summer
Summer after War
Love after War
Best and Worst Summer
Graziella's Yellow Dress
A Yellow Dress
Yellow Dress, Violet Eyes
Eyes Violet, Dress Yellow
Violet Eyes
Love in the Hills
Grazie Graziella
In Love with Graziella
Italy after the War
An Italian Summer
Italian Summer
The Hills of Italy
An Italian Love Story
An Italian War Story
Bella Italia
Ciao Italia
Bittersweet Italia
Amore Italia
Amore Italiano/a
A Harrowing Grace
Bring Me the Summer Sun
The Summer Sun
Summer Made the Light Escape
Bring Me the Sunset in a Cup
All the Summer Laughed
The Summer's Empty Room
A Summer in Italy
An Italian Story
An Italian Tale
Adagio Summer
An Italian Concerto
An Italian Elegy
Intermezzo
An Italian Sonata
An Italian Symphony
Buona Notte
Arrivederci
When Sunrise Grows So Near
The Murmur of a Bee
Something in a Summer's Day
How the Sun Rose
There's a Certain Slant of Light
Past the Setting Sun
A Summer Afternoon
A Quietness Distilled
When Summer Days are Flown
A Solitude of Space
Bloom Upon the Mountain
Summer's Recollection
Enough Love
Enough Tears
Enough Worrying
Finding Enough
Enough Heartache
Enough Waiting
Summer After War
The End of Summer
Summer's End
War, Plants, Summer
A Woman in Italy
Love in a Time of War
La Famiglia
Love, Honor, Betrayal
Wartime in Italy
When Summer Ends
When Summer's Gone
The Last Echo of Music
The Last Echo of Summer
The Terrible, Beautiful Summer
Trees on the Hills
The Green Hills of Italy
On the Side of a Mountain
Summer in the Hills
Summer in the Italian Hills
An Italian War Story
The Leaves of the Trees
A Song in the Rain
Love in the Italian Hills
Music in the Italian Hills
Italian Music

Titling a Book is Not for Sissies – Part I

2011-10-04T13:23:00.001-04:00

Titles for our books never seem to be a simple matter. We are very happy with the title of our latest work, The Wolves of St. Peter's. It seems so obvious now. But its first title was actually Murder of the Marigold Madonna. While we liked it, it somehow seemed too frivolous for the story we are trying to tell. Hence the current title.

TheSidewalk Artist both started out and ended as The Sidewalk Artist. In between, though, were several other possibilities when at first The Sidewalk Artist seemed too bland – ultimately, of course, it was perfect. We can't tell you how many people have told us how much they love that title.

We thought you'd enjoy seeing some of the rejects – they certainly made us laugh upon rereading!

Angel Artist

Guardian Artist

Where All the Dreams Reside

A Woman Sits for Her Portrait

What You Don't Know

The Infusion of a Miracle

The Patron Saint of Happy Endings

If the Moon Could Love a Mortal

The Wonder of the Moonstruck Mortal

Silent Silver Lights and Darks Undreamed Of

The Rapture that the Painter Wrought

Long Has the Summer Sunlight Shone

In Spring's Unclouded Time

Endings - and Beginnings

2011-09-21T10:23:00.001-04:00

With The Wolves of St. Peter’s well into final edits, our thoughts are turning to our next novel. We have been living with our characters and story for so long it is hard to leave them and plunge back into the unknown.

But as intimidating as it is, at least we know we have successfully accomplished this before. Ideas for books don’t come to us fully formed. They grow. For instance, our first book, The Sidewalk Artist, originated with Gina. She had the idea of writing a travel story in the form of postcards home a la Griffin and Sabine. She’d already had a main character named Tulia and, as she described to Janice in their little ad hoc writing group, envisioned a holiday love affair but one that would end in an unconventional way. Although Janice thought the initial attempts hewed a little too close to Bridget Jones’ Diary, she liked the idea. It wasn’t long before the decision was made to write it together.

Somehow – neither of us can remember how – we decided Tulia would meet a sidewalk artist in Paris. We didn’t even know his name, but when he started drawing those famous cherubs, we knew it could only be Raphael! But if he was Raphael, Tulia had to learn about the Renaissance artist of the same name.

Tulia was soon to learn that just about everything known about the Renaissance painter is myth and rumour – the most famous myth of all being the identity of his “true love.” Our obsession with Raphael became Tulia’s as she set out to find the “real” Raphael and his story. We decided to send Tulia and the sidewalk artist to the places the Renaissance artist lived and worked. Rome and Florence were obvious, but Janice – wanting to also write about Venice - was convinced they would go there too. This little detour didn’t just steer the story in an unexpectedly angelic direction, it also made it clear the characters were becoming real and acting of their own accord. They had meant to go to Venice all along and were merely waiting for us to catch up with them and find out why.

At the end of The Sidewalk Artist, Tulia uncovers the surprising truth of Raphael and his true love. We’re convinced she has it right – it honestly wasn’t our idea.

With every story, we’ve written we’ve made the same discovery: Bring the characters to life and they will set the novel’s course. It just takes a little faith and courage to put those first lines down on paper.

Review of C.J. Sansom's "Dark Fire"

2011-07-11T10:24:00.001-04:00

My British neighbours told me that I must read the novels of C.J. Sansom, whose Tudor-era mysteries are wildly popular in the U.K. Given that our current novel, The Wolves of St. Peter's, is a mystery set in Renaissance Rome, I thought I should get cracking on it. And so they lent me Sansom's Dark Fire.

The detective is Matthew Shardlake, a lawyer with a hunchback ordered by Thomas Cromwell to investigate the secret of Greek Fire (dark fire), which was recently discovered in England and then went mysteriously missing. Cromwell wanted the dark fire (essentially a sort of dynamite) to give to Henry VIII in the defense of England and also to save his own hide. Sharklake must crisscross London, from its courts to its seedy side, to discover what happened to the dark fire, risking his own life in the process.

I greatly enjoyed Dark Fire. I couldn't put it down and polished it off in a matter of days. Now it's a matter of returning it to my neighbours and getting them to lend me the next one!

Janice's Thoughts on "Midnight in Paris"

2011-06-29T10:43:00.002-04:00

Lucky you, Gina. I haven’t seen it yet, but looking forward to it. I have, thanks to Netflix, been thoroughly indulging in rewatching old favourites. It will be a summer project as I can never get to the end of the list before starting again. It was Woody Allen's Murder in Manhatten last weekend, which makes me want to watch Husbands and Wives again.

How interesting that Midnight in Paris should share its plot with our The Sidewalk Artist, though I do disagree without even seeing it that Owen Wilson’s character having an unsympathetic fiancé is a flaw in the movie. There is no one who isn’t too shallow/cruel/petty/boring/evil/dull/stupid/fill in the blank that some fool – even a fool who should know better – isn’t going to fall in love with them. Falling in love with someone totally inappropriate is the stuff that art and literature, whether Jane Austen or Woody Allen, especially Woody Allen, is made of. Watching Anthony Hopkins throw away his dignity in You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger was wonderfully and pathetically human.

And perhaps it's another way to compare Midnight in Paris with The Sidewalk Artist. Why was Tulia in love with Ethan? It was something that bothered some of our readers. Why would she fall for a guy her father described as “not having a drop of poetry in him.” And even when she wasn’t sure if she was, lives get tangled up together, and breaking away can be like extracting oneself from a crazy cult.

It is good to see Owen Wilson back where he belongs - in a good movie. Far too good of an actor to be wasted on Marmaduke sequels. I’m sure I’m not alone either in wishing he would go back to writing with Wes Anderson. What a great co-writing team they made! I would sell my soul to be half as good! And it is true that he was our model for Frank our American soldier in Ciao Bella (see the description on page 9). There is a little bit of Ned (Owen Wilson’s character in The Life Aquatic) in Frank too. Perhaps Owen Wilson is a little too old now (happens to the best of us) to play Frank, but maybe with a little of the time travel, which he seems to have perfected in Midnight in Paris, it could work.

Something else that Woody Allen shares with us and The Sidewalk Artist is his love for Venice, and when I was there last year, it was rumoured he had purchased the marvelous Palazzo Dario on the Grand Canal.

Let us know, Mr. Allen, if the rumours are true, and if you haven’t yet read The Sidewalk Artist, perhaps on my next visit to Venice, I could pop a copy of it over the garden wall for you and you could let us know what you think over a glass of Prosecco on the balcony. We’ll bring the Prosecco.

Review of Woody Allen's new movie, "Midnight in Paris"

2011-06-27T09:59:00.000-04:00

I think Woody Allen has read The Sidewalk Artist. As I sat in the theatre the other night watching his new movie, Midnight in Paris, that was all I could keep thinking about.

It won't give too much away to say that this movie slips back and forth between present-day Paris and the Paris of the 1920s. Owen Wilson (a sort-of inspiration behind Frank Austen in our Ciao Bella, by the way, though he'd unfortunately be too old to play the part in the movie version) is the main character, a goofy and good-hearted Hollywood hack aspiring to be a great writer. In Paris with his dud of a fiance (the only flaw in the movie - why did he love her?), he is able to slip into the past and meet with Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Stein, Picasso, and more as he tries to figure out where he belongs and what he should do with his life.

I've watched enough Woody Allen movies to say that this was one of his most delightful. I loved it and recommend you see it too.

And then come back here and let us know if you agree that he must have read The Sidewalk Artist.

After all, the movie - just like our book - begins and ends with the rain.

Update on our next novel, The Wolves of St. Peter’s

2011-06-11T10:58:00.002-04:00

As we close in on the end of The Wolves of St. Peter's, we are surprised at our mixed feelings. Excitement at the possibilities of it being published, relief that the hard work is done, satisfaction of a job well done, but also sadness. The idea for this book came to us while we were still working on Ciao Bella, and so we have lived with these characters for a long time. Just as with our other books, these characters have become real to us. We have become attached to them. We celebrate when they celebrate and mourn when they do. We have never felt that we manipulated them on the page. Instead they have taken their own shape, become their own people, and behaved as they saw fit, often leaving us quite surprised as to where they take us, their supposed creators.

We almost expect to get up in the morning and find them waiting for us at the breakfast table, pot of coffee already brewed. Not that we would want all of the cast at said table. The Turk (perhaps the first fictional character to be inspired by Silvio Berlusconi, current prime minister of Italy)is sure to bring his badly behaved monkey and brag about bunga bunga with Calendula (no one is sure what that means, but we know we don't want to think too hard on it). Michelangelo chews with his mouth open, bread and spittle flying everywhere, and Pope Julius II would expect us to kiss his syphilitic feet, not a pleasant thought at any time, let alone before the first coffee of the day. But Francesco would be there with all manner of interesting news, Susanna would be sure to have found the best cakes in the market, and Raphael – oh, how we've missed his smile since writing The Sidewalk Artist!

We like the idea that The Wolves of St. Peter's is the first book in a trilogy. We don't have to say goodbye to everyone (though some of them we do) quite yet. They will move on and we with them. From Rome to Venice, a city we know and love well. Who new will we meet and how will their lives - and ours - be changed?

So here is to endings and new beginnings.

Win a free copy of Falling for Rain on Goodreads

2011-05-27T10:12:00.001-04:00

Become a member of Goodreads (if you aren't already) and you could win a free copy of Falling for Rain!

Janice and I will also be giving away a copy of Ciao Bella in the Romantic Historical Fiction Lovers group on Goodreads - stay tuned for details.

We have just recently discovered the Goodreads site and are greatly enjoying the chance to connect with readers (and I'm spending a bit too much time enjoying being on the reader side of things too). We're also now on Shelfari, but so far the action seems to be more at Goodreads.

As a reader, do you prefer one or the other? What do you think?

Read for FREE the first two chapters of Falling for Rain

2011-05-05T11:47:00.001-04:00

The first two chapters of Falling for Rain are now available on Scribd - for free!

As one reader said, "Just finished reading the first two chapters and am hooked ... going to check out how to win a copy but may just have to go and purchase one tomorrow :)."

Get your free chapters here - and get hooked.

Falling for Rain review and giveaway!

2011-04-20T09:50:00.001-04:00

Want to win a free paperback copy of our latest novella, Falling for Rain? Then read and comment on this review from Book Drunkard.

Here's an excerpt:

"I just love this writing duo of Gina Buonaguro and Janice Kirk. They are able to weave beautiful and sad love stories that can be completely unpredictable at times. The characters they create are so real that they could be my neighbours and I feel like I know them well by the end of the book. With this book, as with the last two I’ve read by the pair, keep me wondering what the characters might be doing now had the story continued. I love books like that."

Paperback of Falling for Rain now available!

2011-01-17T11:20:00.004-05:00

Falling for Rain is now available in paperback for only US$9.99 through Amazon.com (unfortunately it is not currently available on Amazon.ca).

Please let us know what you think!

First review for Falling for Rain

2010-11-29T11:10:00.002-05:00

Ellen George of Authorsden.com writes:

"Here comes Falling for Rain. Yes, it has the pull of the heart that The Sidewalk Artist has, though is a very different but still wonderful read.

Also for Kindle prices, it is a downright steal!
...
Another winner for these two talented authors."

Read the whole review here.

Our Holiday Gift to You

2010-11-24T13:41:00.003-05:00

We are excited to give you a small gift this holiday season – a good old-fashioned romance novel in ebook format available on Amazon Kindle!

A contemporary romance set in rural Ontario, Falling for Rain is a story about homecomings and forgiveness. When Emily was eighteen, her mother died in a farm accident. Devastated, Emily vowed never to suffer the loss of love again. She fled to Toronto and transformed herself from a farm girl into a sophisticated businesswoman. Now, ten years later, Emily is back to sell the family farm and put her past behind her forever. However, she didn’t count on finding Ray Storm, the farmhand she had nicknamed Rain as a child, more attractive than ever. But as Emily struggles to come to terms with the tragedy of her mother’s untimely death and learns to trust again, Rain harbours a secret that he fears will keep them apart forever.

Falling for Rain is now available for only US$0.99 worldwide (we wanted it to be free but unfortunately Amazon does not allow this option).

Falling for Rain – Worldwide Kindle edition (US$0.99)
Falling for Rain – UK Kindle edition (£0.71)

We have also just discovered that if you don’t have an actual Kindle, you can download the Kindle app for free to your PC.

Finally, we will be offering a traditional print paperback version for US$9.99 in the coming weeks – stay tuned!

In this season of giving, we wish you and yours the very happiest of holidays.

Best,
Gina & Janice

Pippo on Wikipedia

2010-10-04T14:08:00.003-04:00

There is now an entry about Pippo, the plane we write about in Ciao Bella, on Wikipedia! Pippo is a fascinating piece of oral history - we're very glad to see its story dispersed more widely.

Recent review of The Sidewalk Artist

2010-09-10T10:34:00.001-04:00

A blogger named Ashley Boo read and reviewed The Sidewalk Artist. Here's what she had to say:

"I read the most amazing book today. It is called The Sidewalk Artist by Gina Buonaguro & Janice Kirk. It was such a touching story. It made me sad and happy at the same time and it made me want to go to Italy and study the history there. I've always wanted to go, but not really to study. Well, I guess it was to 'study' about the history of the artists that lived there and of their paintings that are there but now I want to know so much about them. Weird how you can read a book and forget its name in a month's time and others you will always remember. I think this is one I'm not likely to forget any time soon. It was all about a woman who travels to Europe to write a novel and about the famous artist Raphael. I wonder if the historical things in this book are true. I will have to look into it when I get home tonight. Anywho, if you have 3 hours I suggest you go pick up this book and read it. And even if you don't fall in love with it like I did, its at least a good novel and a wonderful love story."

New review of Ciao Bella

2010-06-14T09:25:00.002-04:00

"This historical romantic read is a good way to spend some time. The research rings true, and the book serves as a good reminder that war is hell and that its consequences are great and far-reaching. That lesson alone makes the book worthwhile."
--The Back Cover, Roanoke Times

Ciao Bella now on Amazon.com's Kindle

2010-04-27T16:31:00.003-04:00

Ciao Bella is now available on Amazon.com's Kindle. You can also download The Sidewalk Artist as an ebook. Happy electronic reading!

Great review in local Toronto paper

2010-03-31T09:06:00.002-04:00

The Town Crier, a local Toronto paper, had some great things to say about Ciao Bella:

"Ciao Bella is a romantic story, even a weepy at times.

But it is a credible literary feat as well, more in the vein of Captain Corelli’s Mandolin or The Time-Traveler’s Wife, than a drugstore romance. There is never an aversion of eyes from the gritty realities of life during that terrible period. Some of the subplots, especially one involving a girl who had apparently been raped by a German soldier, are rather tragic.

In the vernacular of the day, this is not chick lit.

Or not just chick lit.

Lit for anyone with a heart."

Read the entire review.

Ciao Bella to be published in Norway!

2010-03-03T18:41:00.004-05:00

We are thrilled to announce the publication of Ciao Bella in Norway in Spring 2011 (yes, in Norwegian)! The publisher is Cappelen Damm and we will be part of their new women's fiction series.