I bought the baby his first Italian-language book the other day. It's called Nella Nebbia di Milano (In the fog of Milan - the kid will be one half Milanese, so I figured it was only appropriate) and it's by Bruno Munari. Munari not only wrote and illustrated beautiful books for children (and adults), he was an artist and designer who was especially interested in the graphic arts. In fact, his books always utilize interesting overlay effects with different kinds of paper.
The day after I bought the book, I found out that there's a huge Munari retrospective going on at the Rotonda della Besana, which is one of my favorite venues for seeing art shows here (I also like the new Triennale Bovisa, which is one of the few places in Milan to see contemporary art). The Rotonda is a large circular structure with a central courtyard that started out as a church and cemetery in the early 18th century. Over the years, it has been used for various other things ranging from a public place to do laundry (I'd imagine that means that women would come there with their washboards not a coin-operated situation) to an institution for lepers and others with contagious diseases.The doctor has me on two days of strict riposo, but as soon as I'm allowed to leave the house, I want to go check it out...
7 comments:
I think it is wonderful that you bought the baby his first Italian book! When we moved here, I brought all of my girls' books over with me. I just couldn't leave them behind. Too many memories attatched to them.
Reading to your child has got to be one of THE most satisfying things for a parent. I have been adding to their library of books with Italian ones since moving here. It's great seeing them look at these new books with such content. Sadly, I look at my family and friends here and they aren't big at all about purchasing or reading books to their children. :( I remember once asking where I could find a library to take my girls to, only to have people stare back at me with puzzled looks on their faces!
I wish you many happy years of reading together! :)
The doc put you on bed rest? I hope everything is ok!
Giulia,
The kid already has the full set of Dr. Seuss and a bunch of other things in English. I figured he needed an Italian book. Actually, we are really lucky here to have an excellent library. I get their e-newsletter (yes, they have a great website and e-newsletter too!) and they seem to have frequent reading events for children.
I'm not on bed rest, per se. I have been overdoing it lately (running around a lot, doing a lot of work in the house) and I began to have cramping/contractions again - sigh - so the doctor told me to rest for two days. So here I am. Bored.
I wish there was a place near me that sold books for children in Italian near where I live. My baby will be half Florentine but since we live in the American Southwest nothing is available. Even at the big chain bookstores (there are only 2 Borders near us). trying to raise a baby fluent in Italian will be a hard chore for me!
It is nice that you are going to read to your baby in 2 languages though.
3 books a day for your babe and he's guaranteed to love literature and be a smart chap too.
You wouldn't read Italian books to him; Papa does his 3 books a day too.
Try Tama Janowitz; "Senti anche tu"? for a good juvenile read!
And Gianni Rodari!
Milo
You didn't pay 30 Euros for that book, did you? (ebay price). Still, it looks very special and totally Milanese Futurismo.
I wanted to buy it too, but at that price...
Milo
I saw the Julian Schnabel exhibit at the Rotonda della Besana early this past summer, and it was off tha hook! Did you catch it? If you want a companion @ the Munari exhibit, i'm down! In the meantime, rest up, lay low, and we're all thinking good things for the baby!
J. Doe,
The good thing about being in the U.S., though, is that I bet you can find some Italian children's books online. Will you be able to take the baby to Italy to visit any time soon?
Milo,
I am in Italy so no need to buy Italian children's books on eBay. I didn't pay 30 Euros for it! I just received a Gianni Rodari book as a gift for the baby! It's called I cinque libri. Bellissimo!
Hi Courtney!
I didn't catch the Julian Schnabel show. I watched a pretty extensive interview of him when he was here but, unfortunately, didn't see the show. Yeah, let's go see Bruno Munari together! A presto.
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