Books-and-Authors.net: Where did you
grow up and was reading and writing a part of your life? Who
were your earliest influences and why?
Paul Salsini:
I
grew up in a small town in Upper Michigan. It was a rugged
country and I think a rugged life for most people. Reading
was not a habit or priority for many people. I discovered
that I liked to read in grade school and liked adventure
stories. Eventually, I came to like Dickens a lot.
Books-and-Authors.net: Tell us about your new Dino's
Story A Novel of 1960s Tuscany. I
understand that this wraps up your "A Tuscan Trilogy"?
Explain.
Paul Salsini:
Yes, Dino's
Story follows The
Cielo: A Novel of Wartime Tuscany, set
in 1944, and
Sparrow's Revenge: A Novel of Postwar Tuscany, set
in 1955. Dino was just born in the first and was ten years
old in the second. This is his coming-of-age story. He
leaves his village, Sant'Antonio, to study art in Florence.
There, he meets some fascinating people and finds himself in
the midst of the turbulent '60s. He comes of age helping the
poor and destitute during the devastating flood of the Arno
on Nov. 4, 1966.
Books-and-Authors.net: Would you call your "Tuscan Trilogy"
an historical epic?
Paul Salsini:
Well, the first is set in World War II
and the last during the flood in Florence, so I guess that's
a good description.
Books-and-Authors.net: Did you research for these books? If
so how?
Paul Salsini:
As a journalist, I have loved the
research for these books. I'm used to interviewing people to
find out what they think really happened. I loved reading
books and papers and online material. I discovered so much I
didn't know! And, of course, I felt obliged to go to Italy a
number of times to see the sites I was writing about and to
talk to people to get their perspectives. Yes, an author has
to make such sacrifices!
Books-and-Authors.net:
When did you first visit Italy?
Paul Salsini:
In 1984. I was a reporter and editor at The
Milwaukee Journal, and the paper sent me to Italy to
write a range of stories about the art, the culture, the
people, the politics, and the contemporary scene. I visited
San Martino and met my cousin, Fosca, and her husband,
Renato, for the first time. It was a fantastic visit.
Books-and-Authors.net:
And you've been back since?
Paul Salsini:
Eight times and counting. My wife and
kids have gone there, too, and they love it. I feel very
much at home there. Fosca invites other cousins and cousins
of cousins, and we always have a huge feast.
Books-and-Authors.net: Briefly discuss The
Cielo: A Novel of Wartime Tuscany
and how this novel set the stage for the trilogy.
Paul Salsini:
The Cielo was
inspired by experiences of my cousin, Fosca, who lives in a
village northwest of Lucca in Italy. She and others were
trapped in a farmhouse in the hills when the Germans ordered
the village evacuated. The story wrapped around those
villagers and their experiences during their stay, and also
the nearby massacre at Sant'Anna di Stazzema, in which 540
civilians were killed by the Germans. That led to Sparrow's
Revenge, in
which a member of the Resistance relentlessly searches for
the Italian collaborator of the massacre. And that led to
the Dino
story.
I really didn't plan to
write a trilogy. I just wanted to write the first one. But
after that, the characters remained stuck in my head and I
wanted to know what they were going to do next. They sort of
took over.
Books-and-Authors.net: Plot or character - which is more
important and why?
Paul Salsini:
I'm always interested in telling a
good story, one that moves swiftly and carries the reader
along and maybe has some surprises. But it's important to
have strong, interesting characters to move the story. I
love the people in my books!
Books-and-Authors.net: If Hollywood called and said they
wanted to make "Tuscan Trilogy" into a motion picture and
asked you to cast, who would you cast and why?
Paul Salsini:
Hmm. Maybe a younger Sophia Loren for
Rosa. Someone like Daniel Craig or Hugh Jackman for Ezio.
Oh, well, since this is a dream, Meryl Streep for Donna. I
think a young unknown for Dino.
Books-and-Authors.net: What do you hope to achieve with your
books?
Paul Salsini:
I'd like readers to find a good story,
but also to learn some factual things: the war in Italy, the
Resistance (partisan) movement, the massacre at Sant'Anna,
the flood in Florence. And also some things to think about:
why bad things happen to good people, why we can't always
believe what we want to believe, the need for forgiveness,
even if not forgetting, the disparity between the rich and
poor during a tragedy.
Books-and-Authors.net:
What was the last book you read?
