Women in Sunlight: A Novel

I’m stingy with my stars—a novel needs to present a great story and well developed characters, flow nicely, and offer food for thought and inspiration before I hand out all five. Loved the use of words in this book. The art, the poetry, the food, the friendship, the adventure, the possibilities, the hope. I personally follow the motto “the best is yet to come”; age shouldn’t be a limitation. Mayes obviously thinks the same. Three women turning 60 meet at an open house for a senior-living community, and decide to move to Tuscany for a year together. An adventure that pays off richly in new experiences, friendships, and opportunities for personal growth. Absolutely loved this book.

This book was. very contagious! I just.could not put it down! Frances Mays is one of my favorite authors, and I love the recipes she includes in many of her books ... it is about several, retired, Southern ladies. They each had an interesting life/background, but the fact that they up and took off for Italy, was amazing! I do not think I could or would ever be able do that! The people they met and the friends they made ... How wonderful! I loved living thru their eyes! Their experiences with the language, the people, the foods, and the culture gave them a most wonderful life in their retirement home in Italy.

Absolutely "amazing" service from "Magers and Quinn" - the independent bookseller from whom I bought this book. It arrived 'far' quicker than I expected, and in even better condition than I expected. So I will look to buy from them again! Now - the story - three 'senior' women. at an open house to check out living in a retirement community - meet, get along, become friends, and decide to heck with that lifestyle - let's pool our resources and rent a place in Italy -- and just see where it goes from there! And where it goes - is to some wonderful adventures, brave choices, getting to know yourself, come to terms with life, and enough to make you wonder if 'you' would be that courageous!

The book reminded me of a Nancy Meyers movie. Abundant profusions of flowers, delicious food, artfully arranged and described, the exuberance of a beautiful, sunlit locale drenched in color, art, architecture and history. It’s an unmistakable valentine to Italy, and all it offers to three near-sixtysomething women in search of change, adventure and reinvention. Camille, Susan and Julia meet fortuitously at a seminar for a conventional retirement living community and instead, begin to formulate a bold plan to live for a year in an Italian villa. The pace of the book is much like the travels of each of the women. Days are languid and wonderous, circuitous and simple, as they discover all of the sumptuous tastes and breathtaking sights of enchanting Tuscany. The book meanders, which will captivate some. It is somewhat like accompanying a group of giddy travelers as they explore and immerse themselves in the rich tapestry of Italy. Everything is an exclamation and an unexpected surprise. I liked that these women chose to expand their lives and widen their experiences, rather than the downsizing, marginalizing and vague diminishing that society seems to suggest is “appropriate” as one ages. I appreciated that these fictional women were depicted as vibrant, relevant, curious and engaged, rather than cast aside and consigned to the backdrop of others lives. Read the book if you like cooking, poetry or armchair treks to European vistas. It’s a big, generous, rambling book about the excitement of beginning anew, whatever one’s age, and the magic of travel to reignite and reinvigorate the senses.

This was “almost” the perfect escape book for retired women. The foundation of the story: Three Southern women meet while attending an Open House for a retirement community, become friends due to their refusal to give into being sequestered seniors, then decide to rent a villa and move to Italy for one year. The story line intertwines each woman’s history with her individual and collective experiences during their year abroad.

I loved the escapism, probably because I’m approaching the age/“time of my life” of these women. The basic premise.....Three wealthy, educated, Caucasian women who had lived “safe”, stereotypical lives, impulsively break free from social expectations to follow their hearts to Italy. Who doesn’t wish we could just throw it all to the wind and follow our dreams? Unfortunately, there are important underlying elements that the reader just can’t ignore......

First, these three characters must be incredibly wealthy. However, it’s never really addressed......Just implied. How many single, senior women can afford the type of impulsivity which allows such a move? In addition, throughout the book, each woman has experiences where she spends large sums of money, without any acknowledgement of concern. They’re clearly in a social economic class in which most single, senior women cannot relate. I guess that’s all part of the escapism? Just wish it had been more directly acknowledged. It leaves the reader feeling like she simply “assumes” and “relates” to this life-style. Not so for most.

Second, the friendship between these women is never developed prior to their move to Italy. One moment their touring a retirement community, and the next moment they’re moving to Italy. Their relationships do develop abroad, as their pasts begin to surface and each one begins to understand the other more clearly. But the leap from total strangers to opening the front door of the villa, is vague and under-developed.

Third, there’s an alternate story line about another character, Margaret, that’s just strange. It came out of nowhere (similar to the friendships), and really isn’t a necessary element to the story.

Fourth, there’s the men. Really? Couldn’t these women make it on their own without bringing men into the picture? I have no problem with men......I’ve been married to one for almost 40yrs. I just wanted to see how far these women could expand their horizons, grow as individuals, without bringing relationships with men into the picture.

Finally, as a multi-generational San Francisco Bay Area native, I wanted to scream every time The City was referred to as “San Fran”. NO ONE who lives in the Bay Area uses the moniker “San Fran”! As was previously addressed, it truly is like hearing finger nails on a chalkboard......UGH!!!

So yes, I would recommend this book for middle aged women who dream of “leaving it all behind” and taking on the adventure of moving to Italy. It’s a very easy read.....Took me two nights......And provided a short respite from the challenges of everyday life. But don’t expect it to provide moving insights, or elicit deep self-reflection. This book could’ve been so much more. It almost was......

Take a large copper bowl (similar to the one Julia wants to whisk egg whites in at the Villa Assunta). Add two cups of Frances Mayes's previously prepared Under the Tuscan Sun, one cup of Deborah Moggach's These Foolish Things, one cup of Elizabeth Von Arnim's Enchanted April, a subtle sprinkling of AS Byatt's Possession and bake. Remove from oven, drizzle with freshly pressed olive oil made from fruit you picked yourself this morning, serve and eat surrounded by friends, new neighbours, total strangers and a man whose chicken your dog killed last night. It's undeniable that her prose is exquisite but what she writes is also dangerous as so many readers are physically seduced by the powerful imagery. This is so acute that I personally believe Frances Mayes's novels should come stamped with a health warning, "Readers, please note this is fiction, ie a story or setting derived from the imagination. Real life for many English speaking expats in Tuscany is not in the least bit like this. Without further first-hand research, it is not recommended that you try this yourselves." Still, bet the real estate agents the length and breadth of the region are rubbing their hands in anticipation. For that's what people here in Tuscany love most about Frances, she's so very good for business.

Women in the SUNLIGHT BY Frances Mayes was an enjoyable book. The writing by Zayed is very descriptive in all her telling of ITALY ' S foid,architecture, flowers Etc. It is a treat to read all of this. This is a story of 3 women Julia, Camille, and Susan in their 60 's who meet by happenstance and grow to be great friends. Camille and Susan have lost their husbands and Julia is going through a very unpleasant divorce. After becoming friends, with each other, they decide to go to Italy and lease a house for a year. The village is San Rocco and upon arrival the 3 women cause quite a stir in the small village. Kit is a writer and lives close to the leased house. The lives of the 4 women become very entwined and a deep bond grows. Camille has a passion for oainting, Susan architecture and gardening, Julia food and cooking and Kit is a writer so all are very artistic in their own right and the story grows with much description of Italy. I loved all of thst. The only negative for me is that there is a lot about authors and their works that are detailed and to me it gets too tiresome and unexplained. All in all I still liked the story of these women!