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Sprezzatura

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SKU:
23
Condition:
Like New
Format:
Paperback, 416 pages
Publisher:
Anchor Books, 2001
A witty, erudite celebration of fifty great Italian cultural achievements that have significantly influenced Western civilization from the authors of What Are the Seven Wonders of the World? The word "sprezzatura," or the art of effortless mastery, was coined in 1528 by Baldassare Castiglione in The Book of the Courtier. No one has demonstrated effortless mastery throughout history quite like the Italians. From the Roman calendar and the creator of the modern orchestra (Claudio Monteverdi) to the beginnings of ballet and the creator of modern political science (Niccolò Machiavelli), Peter D'Epiro and Mary Desmond Pinkowish's Sprezzatura highlights fifty great Italian cultural achievements in a series of fifty information-packed essays in chronological order.

A witty, erudite celebration of fifty great Italian cultural achievements that have significantly influenced Western civilization from the authors of What Are the Seven Wonders of the World?

The word "sprezzatura," or the art of effortless mastery, was coined in 1528 by Baldassare Castiglione in The Book of the Courtier. No one has demonstrated effortless mastery throughout history quite like the Italians. From the Roman calendar and the creator of the modern orchestra (Claudio Monteverdi) to the beginnings of ballet and the creator of modern political science (Niccolò Machiavelli), Peter D'Epiro and Mary Desmond Pinkowish's Sprezzatura highlights fifty great Italian cultural achievements in a series of fifty information-packed essays in chronological order.

Editorial Reviews

"[A]s entertaining as it is educational...necessary reading for anyone interested in that large part of our cultural heritage that came into Western culture from Italy." —Professor Umberto Mariani, Italian Quarterly

"Fifty major developments in Western civilization, from the ancient Roman calendar to contemporary Italian fashion...Sprezzatura moves beyond simple encyclopedia-style entries to actually provide usable information." —Fred Gardaphe, Primo Magazine

About the Author
 
Peter D'Epiro received his BA and MA in English from Queens College and an MPhil and PhD in English from Yale University. His latest work is The Book of Firsts: 150 World-Changing People and Events from Caesar Augustus to the Internet. Mary Desmond Pinkowish is the author of numerous articles on medicine and general science for physician and lay audiences. A graduate of Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, where she studied biology and art history, she also earned a master's degree in public health from Yale University. D'Epiro and Pinkowish are also the authors of What Are the Seven Wonders of the World? and 100 Other Great Cultural Lists.