André Aciman's "Roman Year," the elegiacal account of his life as a teenage refugee in Rome after his Jewish family was expelled from their native Egypt, was exactly the book I wanted to listen to during an election cycle in which the harrowing plight of immigrants struggling to build new lives has been callously discounted. Beginning the book with his arrival in Naples with his mother and younger brother, Aciman recounts his alienation in his new country: the abrupt loss of his family's financial security and their adjustment to a new life of privation; his attempts to master Italian and find his place in his school and community; the sense of rootlessness that comes from having suddenly left one home for a Roman sojourn on the way to finding a longed for but only vaguely imagined permanent home, which he ultimately achieves, at the end of the book, in America. At first, the young André deals with his homesickness by sequestering himself in his room with his beloved books, but we soon see him taking tentative steps into his new world, a flaneur venturing beyond the confines of his colorfully described working class apartment building on Via Clelia and into the Centro Storico section of Rome, in whose streets, bookshops and cafes he finds something that approaches happiness. These sections are the heart of the book, as Aciman brings 1960s Rome to vivid life with sensual descriptions of the pungent scent of bergamot at a street market or the buttery taste of a cornetto still warm from the oven of his favorite cafe. A sequence when he borrows a friend's bike for a glorious afternoon in the city gorgeously conveys the freedom and possibility that he is starting to feel there, and makes his decision to go to college in America all the more wrenching, as it will mean leaving behind this nascent and hard-earned sense of belonging. The book ends with André's departure for New York, save for an epilogue when the now-grown author returns to the city many years later with his wife and two young sons. As he wanders through streets almost unrecognizable after a catalogue of changes, Aciman's nostalgia for this place and that lost year is palpable, as it will also be for his readers. (Note: I listened to the audiobook version of this title, and narrator Eduardo Ballerini did a wonderful job bringing Aciman's words to life.)

Thank you to NetGalley and to Macmillan Audio for providing an ARC of the audiobook of this title in return for my honest review.

Audio Arc from NetGalley for an honest review. Release date Oct 22 2024

This is a memoir coming out soon by the author best known for the novel, Call Me By Your Name.

The audio is read by Edoardo Ballerini. When Ballerini reads Italian works his narration is amazing He has just the right tone and inflections and a voice that understands the beauty of the language. It is what drew me to this audio. Once again he was perfect for this narration.

This memoir covers one year in the author's life in Rome when he was 17 years old--a senior in high school and had immigrated to Rome with his mother and brother from Alexandria Egypt. His parents are Turkish and Italian Sephardic Jews whose families immigrated to Egypt in the early 1900's and settled in Alexandria. Andre’s parents had done fairly well in Alexandria but the changing political climate causes the family to immigrate to Italy in 1965. Andre’s brother and mother leave Egypt and are met by Andre’s uncle who has secured a place for the family in Rome. It was unclear to me exactly why the father stayed behind. It is intimated that a woman is the reason although he tells the family that he is being detained with family business and/or the government.

The brothers and their mother who is deaf are left to fend for themselves in Rome. They have little money, the mother has a handicap and none speak Italian well but speak English, Arabic and French. Andre and his brother have attended an American school in Alexandria and hope to find similar schooling in Rome. Italian schools would mean repeating several grades and both boys do not want to do that.

There are so many problems, and it is rather inspiring to hear how the family works to overcome difficulties with so little. Andre’s father is mostly out of the picture, rationalizing that he cannot live with the family due to disagreements with his wife. Andre often describes his mother’s temper and outbursts now directed at him and seems to understand his father’s decision even though it places a direct hardship on his own living situation.

The events of this year are told from the viewpoint of a 17 year old boy. This is not a grown man writing a memoir about his youth. It is told instead as narrative non-fiction. The reader lives through Andre’s days, going to school, bookstores, daily chores and various family events with Andre. The writing is beautiful, so rich at times that I couldn’t listen to it for long periods of time. The romanticism overwhelmed me at times. Every situation, even the mundane seemed to be told with such significance. I felt often I needed time between chapters to digest. This made me think that in print form it might be better read in chunks than straight through. Also I could really have used a family tree. On Audio only, I found myself confused as to uncles, aunts, cousins, friends of one or some, of these. There are many names and relationships to keep straight in Italy, France, Egypt, and the United States.

I did feel it was an excellent listening experience and I would recommend it in that form. I do feel there is much I missed as I am not familiar with this author’s work and so think I missed some of the nuance of how his life has contributed to the stories he writes, as I find that so interesting in memoirs by author’s. It does make me interested in reading one of his novels.

There is less of Rome here than I would have hoped for and little history of the time. This is a young boy’s story. It illustrates in a personal story how difficult immigration is. So much of what we hear in this country has to do with its effects on us and it worth looking instead at how a family copes and the problems that must be overcome just to survive, even though it takes place in 1965 I think much still applies. It is not an easy story, and cannot be told without reading about a lot of hardship. But it is well told and I am glad I got to listen to it.

Roman Year: A Love Letter to the Eternal City and the Boy Who Found Himself Within It

In "Roman Year", André Aciman, the maestro of melancholic longing, gifts us not a fictional romance this time, but a memoir steeped in the same bittersweet beauty. It's a coming-of-age story set against the backdrop of Rome, a city that becomes both refuge and muse for a young Aciman grappling with displacement and the cusp of adulthood.

Aciman paints a vivid portrait of his adolescent self, navigating a new life in a foreign land. Through his eyes, we experience the vibrant tapestry of Rome - its bustling streets, its ancient ruins, its hidden corners. But more than just a travelogue, "Roman Year" is a love letter to the transformative power of literature and the profound impact a city can have on a young soul yearning for connection.

As Aciman immerses himself in the world of books, he finds solace and a sense of belonging. The novels he devours become a bridge to the outside world, allowing him to explore the city's hidden depths and discover the beauty in its everyday rhythms.

"Roman Year" is a testament to Aciman's masterful prose. His writing is evocative and lyrical, transporting the reader to the heart of Rome and the depths of a young man's awakening. It's a poignant reminder of the importance of place, the power of stories, and the enduring magic of self-discovery.

Although I have read Aciman before, I found this book a bit dry. That said, it's not fiction - its a memoir so I think that is more due to the genre, rather than the writer. Not a bad read - just not really for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.