The Devil Served Tortellini
by Shirley Jump
Zebra Books
0-8217-7692-4
CataRomance - 5 Stars
"Take some plain old fashioned fun, add some romantic love, sprinkle it with platitudes and serve it on a bed of wisdom and you have Shirley Jump's The Devil Served Tortellini. With excellent recipes scattered throughout, Shirley Jump is sure to have a winner with this book."
Take some plain old fashioned fun, add some romantic love, sprinkle it with platitudes and serve it on a bed of wisdom and you have Shirley Jump's The Devil Served Tortellini. With excellent recipes scattered throughout, Shirley Jump is sure to have a winner with this book.
Maria Pagliano has been watching her weight steadily increase. With her 10 year reunion coming, Maria joins Chubby Chums to lose weight. After all, she doesn't want to be shown up by Mary Louis Zipparetto, Uncomfortable with the Chubby Chums enthusiasm, Maria sneaks out and runs into Dante Del Rosso. Dante is not having the best day either. His chance to get a great review for his restaurant just literally went up in smoke. Dante is, therefore, delighted to meet Maria. When she saves the day with the food critic, he is amazed. Wanting to get to know her better, Dante is thwarted every step of the way. Maria is not sure what she wants in life but is sure she does not want what her parents have. Doe she want her old boyfriend, someone who is not predictable? Or is Dante the answer to what she wants? She thinks not. How can it be someone who smells like pasta? After all, pasta can kill a diet. But Dante is not discouraged that easily.
The Devil Served Tortellini is great fun to read but Shirley Jump also has an excellent message to give to us all. In some ways, this book does for the Italian culture what My Big Fat Greek Wedding did for the Greek culture. Maria's parents and grandparents remind me exactly of my best friend's Italian family. But this book is so much more. It is the story of growing up and looking at the world with grown up eyes. It is also the story of leaving behind those high school insecurities and moving beyond those childish competitions. Kudos to Shirley Jump for a great job!!
Debby Guyette
CataRomance Reviews