This book is made of a series of small essays about even smaller Sicilian mountain towns. It starts off a little dry, but it isn't long before you find yourself googling the town names and planning vacations. The way Ms. Maggio speaks of Sicily and these towns it's impossible not to fall in love with them. I enjoyed learning about cultural traditions and culinary landscapes.

I know I've probably said this before, but I've always been genuinely fascinated with Sicily. My father's family is from there, and I've always wanted to visit. Reading about these hidden villages made Sicily seem more accessible to me, even more, it made deepened my desire to visit it ASAP.

Independent, unmarried, childless women like Enza, Rosaria, and Antonietta are rare birds in Sicily. They all say it irks some Sicilian men to see them succeed. Maybe their discomfort is the reaction of insecure men to proof that they are not indispensable.

Sad to see this shitty, sexist behavior thrives in other islands around the world.

64%

Any meal is to a Sicilian what a madeleine was for Proust, a gateway to reverie.

66%

In Sicily, where food is love ad the street is a stage, street food is more than a cheap meal, it's Communion.

I really love learning about food culture in other cultures. It's fascinating.

68%

In the market I watched one man stop at what looked like a plate of glass splinters. He grabbed a fistful, threw his head back and swallowed them. They were neonati, transparent newborn fish that Sicilian women steam and sprinkle on pasta but men just eat raw—for virility, the man told me.

D:

A look is a powerful thing in Sicily, where people believe in the Evil Eye and love is declared with a furtive glance in church.

6%

The passengers always applaud when we touch ground.

Good to know islanders from all around share this peculiar trait.

12%

Her favorite snack was a dollop of fresh sheep's-milk ricotta mixed with sugar, lemon zest, and chocolate shavings squeezed between two sugar cookies--a Sicilian Oreo.

Yuuuuuuum.