See Naples: A Memoir begins in a villa high above the gorgeous ruin of Naples four years after World War II. Composer Douglas Allanbrook is passionately involved with Laura, a ringer for Bette Davis, but he is in love with Naples, with the opera at San Carlo, with the inflections and rhetoric of the scugnizzi, street actors in this most dramatic of cities. Allanbrook spent from 1943 to 1945 in Italy with a U.S. infantry division that took seventy-five percent casualties, shuffling among land mines, reading maps in command posts by lamplight, and watching helplessly as his friends were killed. In 1949 he returned to Naples, where he cured himself of the war and married Candida, with whom he returned to America to make a family and a life.

In 1943, 18-year-old Robert Ellis joined the elite U.S. Army Ski Troops of the 10th Mountain Division. This division has been called the most elite and publicized American military unit in World War II. While a member of the unit Ellis maintained a detailed battle diary and conducted extensive wartime correspondence. Upon their arrival in Italy, the U.S. Army Ski Troops played a major role in the defeat of the Germans in Italy. They also faced some of the bloodiest combat of the war; the 10th Mountain Division suffered the heaviest casualties relative to time-in-combat of any U.S. division in the Italian campaign. While the author details the exceptional service of the unit, he also explores the brutal reality of infantry service and reveals how the battles were falsely represented by the media.

A captivating travel memoir Penelope Green delves into the myths surrounding Naples, and with the help of many locals she finds out which are true, which are not, and bravely creates a few myths of her own. Penny Green returned to Italy after a holiday in Australia ready for a challenge. She was looking for a new job and romance, and found work and perhaps love in the toughest Italian city of them all Napoli. Penny takes on her new home with almost the same open acceptance she had when she first arrived in Rome four years ago. Now, though, she is older, wiser and more experienced when it comes to breaking into a new city. The result is a colourful, first-hand account of life in a city that is filed with fear, crime, rubbish, beauty, great food, generous inhabitants and a thrilling sense of living every moment to the fullest.

"When their great-aunt comes to live with Alfie and his older sister Emilia, they learn that food can not only take you places but also bring you back home. In the first book in the series, Alfie and Emilia find themselves magically transported to Naples"--

The Camorra of Napes has risen to a level of strength that rivals the Sicilian mafia. This book traces its origins from the mid 19th century to its present dominance of the Campania region.

"In the tradition of M.F.K. Fisher and Peter Mayle, this ... memoir follows American-born Katherine Wilson on her adventures abroad, where a three-month rite of passage in Naples turns into a permanent embrace of this boisterous city on the Mediterranean. It is all thanks to a surprising romance, a new passion for food, and a spirited woman who will become her mother-in-law--and teach her to laugh, to seize joy, and to love"--

Long out of print, Shirley Hazzard's classic novel of love and memory A young Englishwoman working in Naples, Jenny comes to Italy fleeing a history that threatened to undo her. Alone in the fabulously ruined city, she idly follows up a letter of introduction from an acquaintance and thus changes her life forever. Through the letter, she meets Giocanda, a beautiful and gifted writer, and Gianni, a famous Roman film director and Giocanda's lover. At work she encounters Justin, a Scotsman whose inscrutability Jenny finds mysteriously attractive. As she becomes increasingly involved in the lives of these three, she discovers that the past--and the patterns of a lifetime--are not easily discarded.

It certainly is not easy to add anything to that grand, opulent, and vibrant book that is Naples. More than a city, Naples is a universe of opposites: it is a place blessed with great beauty and breathtaking landscapes, but it is equally dark and grungy, as southern Italian cities frequently are. Naples is aristocratic and ragamuffin, open and inviting, and, at the same time, unruly and secretive. So begins Cesare Cunaccia's introduction to Hidden Naples and the Amalfi Coast, a beautiful journey through Italy's most beautiful southern city of Naples and the extraordinary surrounding coast. The book captures the unique essence of Naples: it affords a glimpse of the glorious architecture, from beautiful churches to private palazzos and their gardens; introduces the reader to local crafts, such as the elaborate Nativity scenes which have been a tradition for centuries (even King Charles III engaged in the favorite local pastime ); and the museums, known for their exceptional collections of ancient art and important archeological remains. Through gorgeous photography and lively text, Hidden Naples and the Amalfi Coast is the only volume devoted to the treasures of this intriguing region of Italy.