Many Beautiful Things

Actor Vincent Schiavelli, well known for his appearances in such films as Ghost, Man on the Moon, and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, grew up in Brooklyn, speaking Sicilian at home. Some of his earliest memories are of sitting at the kitchen table while his grandparents told stories of their hometown, Polizzi Generosa, and the life they left behind When he was nearly forty, Vincent made his first trip to Sicily, and the reality was even more extraordinary than those wondrous childhood stories. Perched 3000 feet above sea level, Polizzi Generosa has changed little in 300 years--the streets, palazzi, and balconies of his grandparents' stories still exist today. This volume is equal parts memoir and cookbook, and the best of both. An accomplished and elegant writer, Scihavelli evokes a foreign and often closed culture from a unique perspective: that of an outsider welcomed into the homes, kitchens, and hearts of the people. This is authentic Sicilian fare that can be reproduced at home with delicious results. Many Beautiful Things is both a culinary and literary feast.