Crime And Humor In Sicily: My Washington Times Review Of Andrea Camilleri's 'The Other End Of The Line'

The Washington Times published my review of Andrea Camilleri’s The Other End of the Line.

I ventured to Sicily many years ago. I visited Palermo, Corleone (the town depicted in “The Godfather”) and the seaside resort of Mondello. I loved the weather, the Mediterranean Sea, the people, the food and the sense of history. Reading Andrea Camilleri’s great crime stories about Sicilian Inspector Salvo Montalbano always evokes my fond memories of Sicily.   

Although I don’t subscribe to his leftist worldview, I’ve enjoyed the irony, humor and suspense in his crime novels over the years. 

After working in Italian theater and television, Andrea Camilleri wrote his first novel at age 66, but it was his first Inspector Montalbano crime novel, written at age 70, that propelled the Sicilian-born writer to international fame. The Montalbano series has been translated in 32 languages and there was a popular Italian TV series based on the novels. He died this past July at age 93.   

That first crime novel in the series, “The Shape of Water,” published in 1994, featured Inspector Montalbano, an intelligent, honest, unconventional and somewhat dour detective with a dry wit who solved crimes in the fictitious Sicilian town of Vigata.

“The Other End of the Line,” translated by Stephen Sartarelli, like his previous novels in the series, offers a good murder mystery, a strong sense of atmosphere, and vivid descriptions of interesting characters, places and Sicilian food. The novel also offers abundant humor.

You can read the rest of the review via the below link:

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/oct/7/book-review-the-other-end-of-the-line/