Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Melania Mazzucco grew up in a part of Rome on the outskirts, not the part people usually associate with the beautiful city. The white Fiat 500 her father bought for the family became an important part of her life.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Melania talks about her relationship with her father when he was still alive. He didn't say much, but unbeknownst to her, tried to get a story of hers published. She talks about one her favorite parts of Rome: Isola Tiberina (Tiber Island), the only river island in the part of the Tiber that runs through Rome.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Melania Gaia Mazzucco talks about one of her novels set in seventeenth-century Trastevere, quite a different place than what we see today. Although she has traveled the world, Mazzucco comes from generations of romani di Roma (Romans from Rome).
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Annalena continues talking with Paolo Giordano, who talks about how places such as Afghanistan and Apulia have influenced his writing.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Annalena meets up with Paolo Giordano who talks about the trauma of moving from Turin to Rome. Giordano's first novel, La solitudine dei numeri primi (the solitude of prime numbers) from 2008 was made into a popular film of the same name in 2010.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Chiara Gamberale talks about how and where she writes, and how her life has changed now that she has a little girl.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Journalist Annalena Benini introduces us to different writers from different places in Italy, beginning with Rome, where she interviews Chiara Gamberale, a novelist.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Margherita left a legacy of progress, both scientific and social. Perhaps she is still looking down on us, since an asteroid was named after her: 8558 Hack.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Even though Aldo and Margherita were very different in many ways, they came together in their skepticism. Towards the end of her life, Margherita couldn't move around much, but her brain never stopped going.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
In this segment, Margherita talks about her choice not to have children and also discusses her position regarding God. She can't prove he exists nor can she prove he doesn't.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
We discover that Margherita Hack was a devoted fan of the long-running TV series, Un posto al sole [a place in the sun]. She explains why. Francesca goes back to Trieste and meets up with Eda who talks about having lived in the same house with Margherita Hack.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Margherita Hack spent some time in politics and was also an entrepreneur at times. But she had a lot of fun, too. On the panel with Camilleri, the author of the Montalbano stories, they all come out (in unison) with the famous introduction Montalbano sono (Montalbano, I am). Putting the verb at the end is typical of Sicily, where the story takes place. Otherwise, it would be Sono Montalbano (I'm Montalbano) or, on the phone, "This is Montalbano."
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Margherita Hack was a scientist and communicator, but she also expressed her opinions about attualità (current events). Part of this segment features a panel discussion she held with author Andrea Camilleri, best known for his novels about Inspector Montalbano that became a popular TV series.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Margherita Hack's talents lay not only in her greatness as a scientist, but also in her remarkable ability to communicate with the general public, and especially young people. She rendered complicated information comprehensible and interesting, using clear and simple examples.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Aldo and Margherita stuck together. He might get bored at her lectures, but he would always be there. They both shared a love for sports and motocycles.
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