About the Book:
In The Supreme Macaroni Company, Adriana Trigiani transports readers from the cobblestone streets of Greenwich Village to lush New Orleans to Italy and back again while exploring the tricky dynamics between Old World craftsmanship and New World ambition, all amid a passionate love affair that fuels one woman’s determination to have it all.
For over a hundred years, the Angelini Shoe Company in Greenwich Village has relied on the leather produced by Vechiarelli & Son in Tuscany. This ancient business partnership provides the twist of fate for Valentine Roncalli, the schoolteacher turned shoemaker, to fall in love with Gianluca Vechiarelli, a tanner with a complex past . . . and a secret.
But after the wedding celebrations are over, Valentine wakes up to the hard reality of juggling the demands of a new business and the needs of her new family. Confronted with painful choices, Valentine remembers the wise words that inspired her in the early days of her beloved Angelini Shoe Company: “A person who can build a pair of shoes can do just about anything.” Now the proud, passionate Valentine is going to fight for everything she wants and savor all she deserves—the bitter and the sweet of life itself.
Romantic and poignant, told with humor and warmth, and bursting with a cast of endearing characters, The Supreme Macaroni Company is a sumptuous feast of delights: an unforgettable narrative about family, work, romance, and the unexpected turns of life and fate.
My Thoughts:
The author portrayed Valentine as an overly ambitious woman who struggled to maintain her business while beginning a new family. The first words that come to mind are: self-centered and ambition seeking. It was difficult to get behind this character, to root for her or hope that her marriage would be successful.
It’s an easy book to read, but I was so discouraged by the attitude of the main character that I really didn’t enjoy reading it. I’m sure the author intended the reader to cheer for Valentine and Gianluca, but instead I found myself wishing they would just end their disastrous marriage. Valentine treated her husband quite badly, but the reasons for this were unclear.
I thought this book would make a great beach read as the two previous books in this series received solid reviews, but unfortunately I didn’t enjoy it. Perhaps reading the first two would have given me a greater understanding of the characters and their conflicts. It was difficult to understand the characters’ motives and why the author chose to create a main character who seemed so nasty and unlikable.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book for free, but the opinions I have expressed are my own.