Over the past decade, author James Carl Nelson has filled a lamentable gap and made a niche for himself writing about America’s forgotten war, the First World War.Two books with detailed titles — “I Will Hold. The Story of USMC Legend Clifton B. Cates, from Belleau Wood to Victory in the Great War” and “The Remains of Company D. A Story of the Great War … Continue reading The Polar Bear Expedition

Working at my desk the other day, I felt the house cool as dusk fell. But since it’s officially spring I was reluctant to turn up the heat. Instead, I used a trick handed down from my great grandmother. I got out the carpet sweeper. It didn’t take long before I’d liberated my rug from shredded dog toys. Thanks to the exertion I also felt … Continue reading Of Stove and Screen

Not a day goes by that I don’t notice an example of an American trend I wasn’t aware of during the 30 years I lived in Italy. This week it’s the “gourmet” kitchen and “dream” laundry rooms. The web is packed with decorating sites and blogs. Also on my mind is how a comment of mine about these kitchens and laundry rooms gave me my … Continue reading Twice as Vice

As a reviewer, I’ve read a lot of entries in what I might call the “foreign woman living in Italy genre,” always with deep wariness. Unless the author was Shirley Hazzard writing about Naples (“Greene on Capri,” 2000; “The Ancient Shore: Dispatches from Naples,” with Frances Steegmuller, 2008). No wonder my guard was up when the first chapters of physician Susan Levenstein’s “Dottoressa. An American Doctor … Continue reading Dottoressa: An American Doctor in Rome

When you have a regular writing assignment such as this column, your brain runs a constant background search for the next topic, sometimes with surprising results. For some unknown quirk of free association, Thursday night dinners at the University Club in the small, midwestern city where I grew up in appeared in my brain’s search bar. Had I smelled roast beef, the club’s only menu … Continue reading Thursday Night, the University Club

The highlight of my 2018 was a trip to France to commemorate the centenary of the World War I Armistice, signed on Nov. 11, 1918. I was in a group with 13 other descendants of U.S. Marine veterans who fought in that war. Our guide was Gilles Lagin, Honorary Marine, all around mensch and encyclopedia of everything “Devil Dog” (as the World War I Marines became known). … Continue reading What You Can and Cannot See

Whenever I used to tell people that I lived in Italy, the response was almost inevitable. “Oh, that’s always been my dream!” they’d say. Then they’d go off on how they’d love to quit their job and move to Tuscany. But no one who said this ever did. Because, you see, leaving your home is not easy, even if the reward is life under the … Continue reading Fallacies on Immigration

As if the early snow and cold snap and leftover turkey sandwiches weren’t enough, now it’s the Christmas catalogs clogging my mailbox, announcing more holidays just around the corner. As a child, catalogs were one of the season’s many treats. But the glossy paper delights had a bittersweet, guilty tone not shared by ordinary seasonal delights such as eggnog or carols. My frugal parents disdained … Continue reading The Greening of Catalogue Culture

More than a year ago, I moved to rural New Hampshire from Milan, where I had lived for 30 years. Making the move represented a major life change that many urged me to decide on slowly. “Try it out for a few months,” they said. “Try going back and forth before making the final decision.” This approach seemed to me like the weaselly way to … Continue reading Going “Home” Again

My father’s first job after his World War II service was as a medical officer on a Navy vessel in the Pacific. He was the venereal disease inspector for the Great Lakes Naval District in Chicago. As far as male sexuality goes, he’d seen it all. And he shared this knowledge with me and my sister. He loved to repeat a line he said originated … Continue reading Thoughts on the Red Red Cape