Italian-American Heritage Resource List

Italian-American Heritage Resources

With the Bronx’s Little Italy just a little ways away, Pelham has a rich Italian-American history, and a vibrant Italian and Italian-American community! Whether you’re exploring your Italian heritage, or just starting to learn the language; whether you’re planning a trip to Assisi, or just hopping over to Arthur Ave; take some time to read-up on Italian history and culture, and the i

At the Library

Children

• Eat, Leo! Eat! by Caroline Adderson 
• Forgotten Voyager: the Story of Amerigo Vespucci by Ann Fitzpatrick Alper
• Nonna’s Birthday Surprise by Lidia Bastianich
• I, Galileo by Bonnie Christiensen
• Granny Torrelli Makes Soup by Sharon Creech
• Blockhead: the Life of Fibonacci by Joseph D’Agnese
• Strega Nona: an Old Tale by Tomie DePaola
• Strega Nona: Her Story by Tomie DePaola
• Strega Nona’s Harvest by Tomie DePaola
• Strega Nona’s Gift by Tomie DePaola
• Strega Nona’s Magic Lessons by Tomie DePaola
• Strega Nona Takes a Vacation by Tomie DePaola
• Big Anthony: His Story by Tomie DePaola
• The Brave Cyclist: the True Story of a Holocaust Hero by Amalia Hoffman
• Kimchi and Calamari by Rose Kent
• First Words Italian by Andy Mansfield
• Becoming Joe DiMaggio by Maria Testa and Scott Hunt

Teens

• Flesh and Blood So Cheap: the Triangle Fire and Its Legacy by Albert Marrin
• Marco Polo: Dangers and Visions by Marco Tabilio

Adults

• The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri
• The Hills of Chianti: the Story of a Tuscan Winemaking Family, in Seven Bottles by Piero Antinori
• Dante: Poet of the Secular World by Erich Auerbach
• Pelosi by Molly Ball
• Don’t Tell Mama! The Penguin Book of Italian American Writing by Regina Barreca
• Dante: His Life, His Times, His Works by Thomas Goddard Bergin
• Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio
• Italian Folktales by Italo Calvino
• Joe DiMaggio: the Hero’s Life by Richard Ben Cramer
• The Angel Esmeralda: Nine Stories by Don DeLillo
• The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
• Andrea Bocelli: a Celebration by Antonia Felix
• My Brilliant Friend (Book one of the Neapolitan Novels) by Elena Ferrante
• Galileo and the Scientific Revolution by Laura Fermi and Gilberto Bernardini
• The Deadly Sisterhood: a Story of Women, Power, and Intrigue in the Italian Renaissance, 1427-1527 by Leonie Frieda
• Pomodoro! A History of the Tomato in Italy by David Gentilcore
• The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna: a Novel by Juliet Grames
• La Bella Lingua: My Love Affair With Italian, the World’s Most Enchanting Language by Dianne R. Hales
• An Italian Wife by Ann Hood
• Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson
• Sinatra: the Chairman by James Kaplan
• Michaelangelo & the Pope’s Ceiling by Ross King
• The Italian Americans: A History by Maria Laurino
• Were You Always Italian? Ancestors and Other Icons of Italian America by Maria Laurino
• How Italian Food Conquered the World by John F. Mariani
• A House in the Mountains: the Women Who Liberated Italy From Fascism by Caroline Moorehead
• An Unlikely Union: the Love-Hate Story of New York’s Irish and Italians by Paul Moses
• The Guarded Gate: Bigotry, Eugenics, and the Law That Kept Two Generations of Jews, Italians, and Other European Immigrants Out of America by Daniel Okrent
• The Lady of Sing Sing: an American Countess, an Italian Immigrant, and Their Epic Battle for Justice in New York’s Guilded Age by Idanna Pucci
• The Godfather by Mario Puzo
• The Sicilian: a Novel by Mario Puzo
• Leonardo da Vinci: Artist, Inventor, and Scientist of the Renaissance by Francesca Romei
• Garibaldi by Denis Mack Smith
• The End by Salvatore Scibona
• Conversations with Scorsese by Martin Scorsese and Richard Schickel
• Eternal by Lisa Scottoline
• Galileo’s Daughter: a Historical Memoir of Science, Faith, and Love by Dava Sobel
• The Medici: Power, Money, and Ambition in the Italian Renaissance by Paul Strathern
• Death in Florence: the Medici, Savonarola, and the Battle for the Soul of a Renaissance City by Paul Strathern
• Beneath a Scarlet Sky: a Novel by Mark T. Sullivan
• Garibaldi, the Man Who Made a Nation by Ronald Syme
• Don’t Sing at the Table: Life Lessons from My Grandmothers by Adriana Trigiani
• The Supreme Macaroni Company: a Novel by Adriana Trigiani
• Machiavelli: a Biography by Miles Unger

Cookbooks

• Italy From the Source: Authentic Recipes From the People That Know Them Best by Sarah Barrell
• Pasta Verde by Judith Barrett
• Lidia’s Family Table by Lidia Bastianich
• Lidia’s Italy in America by Lidia Bastianich
• Lidia Cooks From the Heart of Italy by Lidia Bastianich
• Molto Batali: Simple Family Meals From My Home to Yours by Mario Batali
• Mario Batali Big American Cookbook: 250 Recipes From Across the USA by Mario Batali
• Giuliano Bugialli’s Foods of Italy by Giuliano Bugialli 
• Urban Italian: Simple Recipes and True Stories From a Life in Food by Andrew Carmellini and Gwen Hyman
• A Thousand Days in Tuscany: a Bittersweet Adventure by Marlena De Blasi
• Giada’s Kitchen: New Italian Favorites by Giada De Laurentiis
• Giada at Home: Family Recipes From Italy and California by Giada De Laurentiis
• Giada’s Family Dinners by Giada De Laurentiis
• Pasta by Julia Della Croce
• Simple Italian Sandwiches: Recipes From America’s Favorite Panini Bar by Jennifer Denton, Jason Denton, and Kathryn Kellinger
• Good & Garlicy, Thick & Hearty, Soul-Satisfying, More-Than-Minestrone Italian Soup Cookbook by Joseph J. Famularo
• The Classic Italian Cook Book: the Art of Italian Cooking and the Italian Art of Eating by Marcella Hazan
• Venezia: Food & Dreams by Tessa Kiros
• My Italian Kitchen: Favorite Family Recipes by Luca Manfe and Leda Scheintaub
• Eating Rome: Living the Good Life in the Eternal City by Elizabeth Minchilli
• Tasting Rome: Fresh Flavors & Forgotten Recipes From an Ancient City by Katie Parla and Kristina Gill
• Pasta Modern: New & Inspired Recipes From Italy by Francine Segan and Lucy Schaeffer
• Old World Italian: Recipes & Secrets From Our Travels in Italy by Mimi Thorisson

Movies

• A Bronx Tale
• My Voyage to Italy
• Uberto E

Borrow Online

Overdrive

• My American Dream: A Life of Love, Family, and Food by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich (available as ebook)
• The Volunteer by Salvatore Scibona (available as ebook)

Hoopla

• The Italian/American Experience by Louis J. Gesualdi (available as ebook)
• New York City’s Italian Neighborhoods by Raymond Guarini (available as ebook)
• Maria Montessori: a Biography by Rita Kramer (available as ebook)
• Long Island Italian Americans by Salvatore J. LaGumina (available as ebook)
• Fire at the Triangle Factory by Holly Littlefield (available as ebook)
• Italian Immigrants by Tyler Omoth (available as ebook)
• The Italian Americans (available as movie)
• The New Italian American Songbook (available as ebook)

Kanopy

• In My Mother’s House
• Men At Lunch
• Bicycle Thieves
• Martin Eden 
• Umberto D
• Mid-August Lunch

Explore Kanopy’s Italian Cinema category!