Supplement, wherein Patrick waxes rhapsodically about vacation…
As I was walking down the tiny streets of the Trastevere neighborhood in Rome… What’s that? You didn’t hear me? I said I was walking in the Trastevere a few days ago on a street so narrow Vespas could hardly pass each other. I passed an appropriately little used book store and there on the bargain book shelf outside the store was a copy of a book that stopped me in my tracks. It was facing cover out so I recognized the author’s name but I had never seen the title. It turned out to be the Italian translation of Max Shulman’s “Rally Round the Flag, Boys!” This beautiful copy is the “seconda edizione” and was printed in Italy a year after the first English language edition. I picked it up for 2 Euros for the MHS library although I’ll tell the IRS it is worth much more. 8 Euros at least.
The next day in the older part of Rome I saw several stores selling “Peanuts” related tee shirts, in Italian of course, and thought Romans must be reading our list of 150 best Minnesota books. Blame the thought on jet lag.
Chow, grazie!
October 16th, 2010 at 8:42 pm
Lucky dog!
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October 18th, 2010 at 1:38 pm
SHALL WEALL ASSUME THAT YOU KNOW HOW TO SPELL\CIAO\ AND WERE TRYING TO BE FUNNY? SINCE YOU SPELLED \GRAZIE\ i’LL GIVE YOU THE BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT.
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October 19th, 2010 at 7:39 pm
Chow, Schmow. The important thing to keep in mind is that Minnesota culture has invaded every corner of the planet. We already knew the Italians were reading Fitzgerald how fun to find out they are also reading Shulman. Whats next? Clifford Simak? Thanks Patrick.
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October 22nd, 2010 at 9:27 pm
wow–that brings me back. i read that max schulman book when i was a little kid, stealing my older sister’s copy. (which i also did with her copy of “myra breckenridge,” but that’s another story.)
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Patrick Coleman reply on October 25th, 2010:
I’ll buy you a beer if you tell me the “Myra” story.
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October 23rd, 2010 at 6:14 am
Minnesota is everywhere.
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November 27th, 2010 at 10:14 am
Time for a new “best book”? It kills us to hold our breath for so long.
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August 4th, 2011 at 3:47 pm
I just have to wonder how you can mention Shulman without including his, Bare Foot Boy. To me it is a very interesting and humorous “historical fiction.” It portrays the 1930s culture in and near the U of M in wonderful humorous detail.
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Patrick Coleman reply on August 5th, 2011:
Dear Ralph, I gotcha on this one. It turns out that you are right that you can’t mention Shulman with out mentioning his 1943 “Barefoot Boy With Cheek”. It also turns out that I did mention the book! I even quoted from the book’s introductory note which stated that the University of Minnesota was “wholly imaginary”. I was remiss in not stating the title. “Barefoot Boy with Cheek” is a funny book, which Shulman claims to have written while working at the Minneapolis law firm of “Lame and Halt”. Thanks for reminding us of the work. Pat
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