The Cielo Journal

Devil's Bridges featured in travel sections

I was fascinated by the Devil's Bridge at Borgo a Mozzano in Tuscany and it became a crucial element in "Sparrow's Revenge: A Novel of Postwar Tuscany." A photo I took is on the cover of the book. 

I became even more fascinated when I discovered that there were about 25 'devil's bridges' in Europe, all constructed about the same time (the Middle Ages) and all having the same Faustian story.

So I wrote an article about the bridges and submitted it to travel sections of newspapers. It appeared in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel yesterday, Sunday, March 1,and was in the Indianapolis Star on Feb. 1. It's also scheduled to run in the Dallas Morning News sometime in March. (You can also find it on this web page.)

More publicity for "Sparrow's Revenge"

I've been very grateful for all the publicity "The Cielo" and now "Sparrow's Revenge" has received. But I must say I was surprised when I saw the January issue of 50 Plus, a thick monthly newspaper published in Hartland, Wis. The subtitle is "It's not an age. It's an attitude."

I was interviewed by the editor in December and thought he's published a little story about the book. Well, the little story took up the entire front page and a full page inside. There's a 4.5 by 5 inch picture of me along with photos of the covers of the two books on the front page.

I'm very grateful.

And that's not all.  

Primo Magazine, "for and about Italian Americans' published a rave review of "Sparrow's Revenge" in its November-December issue. Among other things, it says;

"Salsini's book reminds us of the power of the past and how the effects of war can haunt us for years after the conflict is over. The question arises: How does one overcome a war's injustice? Salsini's powerful and moving tale allows us to consider one answer in what he and most of us would agree is one of the most beautiful places in the world."

In addition, Fra Noi, a thick monthly newspaper in Chicago, published my essay on 'devil's bridges' in its December issue. 

All very rewarding.

Time to catch up on Sparrow promotions

I really should make more entries, but this has been a very busy time. Regarding "Sparrow's Revenge," I had both a radio and TV appearance: "Lake Effect" on WUWM was aired on Dec. 4.  That followed the "Morning Blend" television interview on Nov. 14. And just last Sunday, Dec. 14, I was interviewed on Tony Maggia's Italian American radio program out of New Jersey for a half hour.

In addition, La Gazzetta Italiana in Indiana printed my press release about the book, the Italian Tribune in New Jersey printed my article about Devil's Bridges, and I was interviewed by the editor of the 50 Plus newspaper for an article that is to appear in the January issue.

Oh, and over Thanksgiving, I made a quick trip to Italy. More research, you know. 

A great turnout for the bookstore reading

They had to bring in more chairs and still people were standing as I gave my talk and reading about "Sparrow's Revenge" at the Schwartz Bookstore on Downer Ave. last night. It was great to see former students, people from the condo, people from church, old friends, some of whom we hadn't seen in some time. Must have been about fifty people there. And many bought books, both the sequel and "The Cielo." 

Great fun.

So now the promotion for "Sparrow's Revenge" begins

I don 't know if I'll be as aggressive in promoting "Sparrow's Revenge: A Novel of Postwar Tuscany" as I was in spreading the word about "The Cielo: A Novel of Wartime Tuscany." But I'll be doing some things.

Already on Monday I talked to the Guild for Learning in Retirement, a very active program sponsored by the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. And on Monday afternoon, I taped a segment for "Lake Effect," a popular show on WUWM. I don't know yet when the interview will be aired

Next Tuesday night, Nov. 18, I'll be doing my major reading, at Schwartz' Bookshop on Downer Ave. It's at 7 p.m. There's been a little display of the book, along with my photo, in the store for weeks, and postcards have been sent out. It was great fun when I did this for "The Cielo" and I'm looking forward to this one very much. We plan to have cookies and soft drinks

And www.bookreview.com, which gave the book a very nice review (see below) interviewed me, and it's now posted.  See bookreview.com

"Sparrow's Revenge" gets its first review

I'm very grateful to the folks at Bookreview.com for this very nice review. It's also posted on amazon.com with five (!) stars.

A compelling, well-researched look at the nature of guilt and revenge,October 29, 2008

By	BookReview.com

Set in rural Tuscany in the 1950s, Sparrow's Revenge explores the aftermath of the horrific massacre of 560 Italian civilians in the village of Sant'Anna di Stazzema. The story follows Ezio Maffini, a former partisan turned schoolteacher who has never forgiven himself for failing to prevent the deaths of his loved ones in Sant'Anna. When Ezio learns that the one-eyed Fascist widely believed to be a Nazi collaborator responsible for the atrocity has been spotted in the Tuscan hills, he poses as a reporter in hopes of tracking him down and taking revenge. 

This is not a feel-good book with a dualistic view of good and evil. Sparrow's Revenge is a compelling, well-researched, realistic look at the dangers of turning those who have wronged us into caricatures of absolute evil, and of being blinded (literally and figuratively) by personal heroes we believe are absolutely good. 

While Salsini wrote Sparrow's Revenge as a sequel to his first novel, The Cielo , it stands well on its own. (I haven't read The Cielo yet, but I certainly intend to now!) It's easy to see why Salsini's writing has won so many awards-- his first novel won First Place for Fiction from the Council of Wisconsin Writers and First Place for Fiction from the Midwest Independent Publishers Association. His characters are believable, he pays precise attention to historical and geographic detail, and his pacing and word choice are impeccable. 

I enthusiastically recommend Sparrow's Revenge to anyone with the slightest interest in history, Italy, or human nature-- in short, to everyone.

The sequel is out!

Yes, last week I received my first copies of "Sparrow's Revenge: A Novel of Postwar Tuscany."

I like it.

I like the cover and I like the general design. You're going to ask if I prefer "The Cielo" over "Sparrow's Revenge" or vice versa. That's like choosing among your children, something I've never done. And I really don't know how readers are going to react when they read "Sparrow's Revenge." It's a different kind of story, I guess it's called a "search" story. I think it is more suspenseful, and there's a predator and a prey. I'm looking forward to hearing what readers think, even if it's negative.

I know there will be questions about the photo of the bridge on the cover. That's the "Devil's Bridge" at Borgo a Mozzano north of Lucca. I took the photo. When I saw the bridge, I knew that it had to have a place in the story. You'll have to read it to find out.

The book is available now at the usual sites, amazon, barnesandnoble, borders, etc.

TV interview now being shown in Milwaukee

            The interview I did for the West Allis public access television station seems to be taking on a life of its own.

            Besides being on YouTube, it is now being shown on the Milwaukee public access station, Channel 14 (MATA). In fact, it will be shown nineteen times through October. The schedule:

            Wednesday, Sept. 24, 9 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 25, 9:30 a.m., Saturday, Sept. 27, 2:30 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 28, 8:30 a.m., Monday, Sept. 29, 8:30 p.m.

            Wednesday, Oct. 1, 9 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 2, 9:30 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 4, 2:30 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 5, 8:30 a.m., Monday, Oct. 6, 8:30 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 8, 9 p. m., Saturday, Oct. 11, 2:30 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 12, 8:30 a.m., Monday, Oct. 13, 8:30 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 15, 9 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 16, 9:30 a.m., Saturday, Oct. 18, 2:30 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 19, 8:30 a.m., Monday, Oct. 20, 8:30 p.m.

"The Cielo" is now on YouTube

A few posts earlier, I noted how I was interviewed on a television program about "The Cielo." Well, the producer/interviewer of that show, Dean Andrade, has taken the show, split it into four parts and put it on YouTube.

The first part is called a "book trailer," a new phenomenon that, like a movie trailer, promotes a book. (Some book trailers are huge productions; mine is just an interview.) 

You can find mine at 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnUHiE109I0

And you'll see links there to the rest of the interview.

The sequel to "The Cielo" is going to the press!

I read the final proofs of the sequel to "The Cielo: A Novel of Wartime Tuscany" today and so now it's going to the press. There should be copies available by the end of the month. So I hope readers will enjoy "Sparrow's Revenge: A Novel of Postwar Tuscany." Thanks.