The Nine Lives of Tito d’Amelia
By Ettore Farrattini Pojani
Italian Literature / Historical Fiction
Publisher: Bayou City Press
Pages: 326
Publication Date: October 11, 2024
SYNOPSIS
This is the first (and only) English-language version of an award-winning Italian novel, The Nine Lives of Tito d’Amelia. Nine Lives is a love story about a cat, a family, and an Italian town.
Mixing fiction with fact, Nine Lives tells the story of the town of Amelia, Italy, throughout the 32 centuries of its history. In fact, Amelia is considered the first organized city of central Italy, being four centuries older than Rome. The author uses the multiple lives of a cat named Tito as the way to span the centuries.
Author Ettore Farrattini Pojani is the heir of the Farrattini dynasty, a centuries-old family in Umbria whose family palazzo is in Amelia, north of Rome. Tito’s first life occurs in pre-historic Umbria, and his ninth is in the future. Tito’s mission though all nine of his lives is to help the town and the family to succeed.
A changing cast of characters traces the Farrattini line though the centuries, with Tito joining up with a Farrattini in each generation. Using his feline wiles, Tito bends humans to his will, helping them through many challenges from drought to wars to lovelorn marriages to selfish politicization of joint crises.
In this highly imaginative novel, the author mixes fictional lives with non-fictional information about historical figures as well as the Farrattini family and the town of Amelia. Readers are left wondering about details, such as what is fiction and what is fact. The last chapter will evoke surprise, though a clue that the surprise is coming is contained in the very first chapter. Originally published in Italy in 2022, this first English-language translation is published by Bayou City Press in Houston, Texas, and includes additional drawings, maps, lists of characters, a listing of foreign words and special terms, and notes on sources.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ettore Farrattini Pojani is the heir of the noble Italian Farrattini dynasty, whose family palazzo is in Amelia, Italy, north of Rome. A music expert and critic, Ettore has published extensively on music topics and currently is a collaborator on the website Broadwayworld.com.
This, his second book, was published in Italy in 2022 and has won numerous awards. Prior to focusing on writing, Ettore studied art restoration and specialized in furniture restoration. For almost 20 years he had a workshop in Rome in which hundreds of valuable, unique pieces were brought back to their splendor thanks to his dedication and expertise. In 2001 he transformed the family palazzo into a hotel de charme, which he personally ran for 15 years until it was damaged by the 2016 earthquake.
A dedicated traveler, Ettore is fluent in French and English besides his native Italian.
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REVIEW
The Nine Lives of Tito d’Amelia was a fascinating read that left me rethinking my stance on cats. I’ve long been a dogs-only kind of girl, and I avoid cats at all costs as I’m highly allergic. After reading about Tito, however, I find myself softening on the issue.
All tongue-in-cheekiness aside, Ettore Farrattini Pojani took me on a roller coaster ride through history, using his real-life cat to inspire a tale that spans centuries and weaves fact and fiction seamlessly.
I enjoyed that the author set up the story so that, rather than jumping directly into a new life, centuries pass before Tito reincarnates. I also appreciated that as each chapter opens, we’re given a list of characters to orient us in time—but not in place, as that remains constant. Pojani uses his hometown of Amelia, a town in the Italian region of Umbria, as the setting for all nine of Tito’s adventures.
The pacing was a bit different from what I’m used to, but I recognized it for what it was: the unique cadence of Italian culture, translated into English.
The depth of the author’s research was clear, even without the list of sources shared at the end of the book. He masterfully intertwines the details of each time period with the plot, moving back and forth between history and imagination with ease.
The ending of the story was especially satisfying; I won’t say more, as I want to avoid spoilers. Suffice it to say that the payoff makes the book worth the read.
The Nine Lives of Tito d’Amelia has piqued my interest in exploring the modern-day city; I’ve already done so online, and now visiting in person is an item on my bucket list.
I’m giving the book a solid four stars.
If you enjoyed this book, you might also enjoy watching: A Cat’s Life, 10 Lives, Inside the Mind of a Cat
And you might enjoy listening to:
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