As a parent, Roger Friedland (The Fellowship) was nervous about his twin daughters reaching sexual maturity in a typical American high school, where sex is prevalent but unconnected to romantic love, so when he was offered a chance to teach in Rome, he and his family moved abroad. Surrounded by lush Roman romanticism and eroticism, Friedland wondered why Romans have such a low divorce rate and why rape statistics are far lower than they are in the U.S., despite the obvious flirting and passion evident in all aspects of Italian culture. He was also curious about the effect Catholicism has had on the sex life of Italians; the number of affairs Italian men and women have, regardless of their religious or marital status; and the strong role Italian mothers play in the lives of their sons.
In an interesting mix of personal reflection, commentary on Italian and American history and studies conducted with his American and Italian students, Amore: An American Father's Roman Holiday unravels the complex differences between American and Italian attitudes toward sex, love, passion and intimacy. He reveals that Italian culture, patriarchy and matriarchy can affect an entire generation's attitude toward the meaning of love and romance and the sanctity of marriage. He also examines the destructive direction in which he believes young American men and women are headed, given that they don't share these same values: "American love is a suspect enterprise these days because American marriages and families so often founder." This fascinating cultural comparison will open readers' eyes to the serious problems surrounding love and intimacy in the United States. --Lee E. Cart, freelance writer and book reviewer