CCR Book Club: Meet the Author Lisa Rochon - October 26, 2023

The CCR Book Club is happy to announce that on October 26th Lisa Rochon will be presenting her novel "Tuscan Daughter." Lisa Rochon is an award-winning architecture critic for the Globe and Mail newspaper. She has also authored, co-edited and contributed essays for numerous works on architecture and city planning. "Tuscan Daughter", her debut novel, has been recommended by the Historical Novel Society. The story is set in and around Florence during the early 16th century and brings the Renaissance period to life. More information on Lisa Rochon and her novel can be found at:  https://lisarochon.ca/

When: Thursday, Oct. 26, 2023

Time: 6:45 p.m.
Where: Private residence of CCR member; exact address sent to confirmed participants by email.

Potluck: finger food
Further info & RSVP: ATTN Lucy at canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Lucy. Open only to current members of the CCR.

Book Presentation: Jeannie Marshall - October 5, 2023

Fellow Canadian and longtime Rome resident Jeannie Marshall will present to members and friends of the CCR her personal exploration of what it means to look at art in her book "All Things Move: Learning to Look in the Sistine Chapel." The Washington Post review describes it as "compact and elegantly voiced." It is a book that starts in the Sistine Chapel with Michelangelo’s frescoes and moves out and onto the streets of Rome, entwining personal history with the history of the last half millennium, bringing us back to the present moment where we can stand in the room and ask what this great piece of Western art means to us in the twenty-first century.

Born and raised in Toronto, Jeannie has lived in many global cities and has worked as a reporter for numerous Canadian and international newspapers and sites. She moved to Rome in 2002.

When: Thursday, October 5, 2023

Time: arrival starting 6:30 p.m., 7 p.m. presentation begins.

Where: CCR member's private residence, Quartiere Trieste area; exact address sent to confirmed participants by email. Light refreshments will be provided.

Cost: Free.

RSVP to canadarome@gmail.com by noon Oct. 3rd, or until all places booked.

CCR Book Club: Meet the Author Charmaine Wilkerson - March 21, 2023

Once again we're going to meet an author through the CCR Book Club! This is your opportunity to discuss the work of long-time Rome resident Charmaine Wilkerson in person.

Her much-acclaimed debut novel delves into the ways our individual identities are built on cultural heritage, food traditions, family bonds and secrets, friendships, and our natural and historical contexts. Set in the Caribbean, the UK, the US and even some moments in Italy, the novel portrays the experiences of many communities in diaspora.

When: Tuesday, Mar. 21, 2023
Time: 7 p.m.
Where: Private residence of CCR member; exact address sent to confirmed participants by email.
Potluck: Please RSVP letting Lucy know what finger food you will be bringing.
Further info & RSVP: canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Lucy. Open only to current members of the CCR.

CCR Book Club: Meet the Author - November 20, 2022

The CCR Book Club is pleased to announce that Anne Giardini will be presenting her novel "Advice for Italian Boys" (Harper Collins, 2009) at the November meeting.

Anne studied Economics and Political Science at the University of Ottawa and Simon Fraser University and then went on to obtain an LLB from the University of British Columbia and an LLM from Trinity Hall, Cambridge University. Anne’s work includes two novels published by Harper Collins, numerous columns for the National Post and, together with her son, Nicholas Giardini, co-editing Startle and Illuminate, a book of advice and reflections on writing by Anne’s mother, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Carol Shields. Anne is a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, is an Officer of the Order of Canada and a member of the Order of British Columbia, and most recently, is the recipient of a degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, from Simon Fraser University. 

 
Anne divides her time between Vancouver, where she served as chancellor of Simon Fraser University (2014-2020) and currently serves on several boards, and her home in Rome, Italy. We are delighted to have Anne as a member of the CCR and look forward to discussing her charming novel.

When: Sunday, Nov. 20, 2022
Time: 1 p.m.
Where: Quartiere Trieste area; exact address sent to confirmed participants by email.
Potluck: Please let Lucy know what you'll be bringing.
Further info & RSVP: canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Lucy.

CCR Book Club: Meet the Author Event - May 24, 2022

For the month of May, the CCR Book Club has organized a Meet the Author Event with Connie Guzzo-McParland, an Italian-Canadian living in Montreal. She is in Italy to promote “Le Donne di Saturno” published by Rubbettino. This Italian novel combines her two English novels "The Girls of Piazza Amore" and "The Women of Saturn". Taken together, the two English novels describe the process of emigration from Calabria to Canada, including memories of life in a small Calabrian village, the crossing from Naples to Halifax, and the lives of three Italian-Canadian women in Montreal. It is a story that goes back and forth between Calabria and Montreal, the past and the present, old ways and new ways.

This event is open to all CCR members.

When: Tuesday, May 24, 2022
Time: 7 p.m. 
Where: by Zoom or potluck in person (limit 10 people); exact address sent to confirmed participants by email.
RSVP: canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Luigi.

Special Event: Meet the Author Matthew Kneale - October 6, 2018

It isn't often that a history book garners as much buzz as "Rome: A History in Seven Sackings" by Matthew Kneale. The CCR Book Club has made special arrangements for the author to meet with us to talk about the making of his book. Matthew lives in Rome and expresses his love of this city in a unique story-telling style that is warm, humorous, and engaging. This event will take place in a historic location near Piazza Venezia that is not normally open to the public.

For those of you who would like to read the book, it is available on Amazon. Although it's written in a very entertaining fashion, it's quite long; it's the history of Rome, after all, so start reading soon! All Canadian Club of Rome members and their guests are welcome to attend. Space will be limited and reservations will be required.

When: Saturday, October 6, 2018
Time: Arrive by 1:50 p.m.; a brief tour of the monastery will start at 2 p.m. sharp, followed by Matthew Kneale's talk.
Where: Monastery of Santi XII Apostoli (near Piazza Venezia); details on the exact location will be sent to confirmed participants.
Potluck: Please bring sweets for 6-10 people (finger food, no kitchen preparation or heating) and/or chilled Prosecco to share.
Cost: Free; however, to thank the Franciscans for the use of their monastery, each individual is asked to contribute to their food bank by bringing canned goods, such as tuna, mackerel, salmon, meat.
Further info & RSVP: canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Luigi to coordinate your attendance.

Meet the Author with the CCR Book Club - March 17, 2018

The CCR Book Club would like to invite all interested CCR members to join them as they welcome Canadian author Keith Henderson to their March meeting!

The group will be reading Henderson's latest novel, "Acqua Sacra" (available both in the original English and in an Italian translation), and the author and his agent will be at the March meeting to answer questions and listen to the group's reactions as they enjoy a potluck lunch.

"Acqua Sacra" is about a Montreal Italian-Canadian family with a property in Acqua Sacra, Abruzzo. A recently-divorced mother of two teenagers, her family's earthquake-damaged ancestral home in need of repair, feelings of failure, self-doubt and guilt swirling with the struggle for self-esteem and independence, public and private sector corruption and organized crime on both sides of the Atlantic, Old World beliefs and symbolism, and a cast of (sometimes comedic) characters including accountants, lawyers, bureaucrats, mobsters, witches and migrant workers -- these are some of the many features of this 2016 work.

Space is strictly limited for this special Meet the Author event, so book soon and start reading!

When: Saturday, Mar. 17, 2018
Time: 1:00 p.m.
Where: Piazza Bologna area; exact address sent to confirmed participants by email.
Potluck Dinner: Please RSVP letting Luigi know what dish you will be bringing -- in this case only finger food and/or desserts.
Further info & RSVP: canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Luigi.