This is a book that will be appreciated by all Italophiles, those that have travelled the country and absorbed and admired the colour, the passions, the contradictions and the creativity of this diverse land and it people. The author and photographer B. C. Hartmann is one of such people. He has travelled throughout Italy from the top to the toe and throughout these journeys set out to capture the Italians and their way of life as he saw it through his eyes and the lenses of his camera. With a deep knowledge of the history and the political and social contradictions involved, he has roamed the country seeking special moments and events that he considers to be important for the onlooker to contemplate, appreciate and understand. He has assembled a variety of photographs from still-life compositions to crucial moments in an activity. His intention in choosing each picture in this selection is to encourage people to look beyond each fragmentary scene and then ` narrate` or imagine for themselves the background to, and the resultant circumstances involved, in each composition and scenario. This fascinating book is not a simple travelogue, but a glorious essay that will help the observer to feel the heart and soul of a people and their land.