- Author
- Giusy Versace
- Title
- Con la testa e con il cuore si va ovunque. La mia storia
- Info
- Mondadori, 2013 [English edition not available]
- Additional info
- 175 pages – €11,90
- Author
- Nicolò Govoni
- Title
- Bianco come Dio
- Info
- Rizzoli, 2018 [English edition not available]
- Additional info
- 220 pages – €17,00
- Author
- Mollie Moran
- Title
- Aprons and Silver Spoons: The Heartwarming Memoirs of a 1930s Scullery Maid
- Info
- Penguin, 2013
- Additional info
- 388 pagine – £7.99
Shock bibliotherapy suggestions… every book, both fiction and non-fiction, can inspire, help, and guide us in every walk of life, as long as we take the time consider the things that, in the book, resonate with our experience, situation and/or emotional state, and then we try to find creative solutions…
… in this piece I recommend three very inspirational memoirs, especially in a historical and social time where we can perceive a lot of frustration and it’s hard to be authenical and feel good. Giusy, Nicolò, and Mollie shown a great courage and zest for Life which allows them to overcome adversities, and we should follow suit and act, rather than complain, take it out on “bad luck” or venting to others. They choose to take responsibility for their life and to accept their circumstances, putting into practice Gadhi’s advice: Be the change you want to see in the world. After rading their stories, I hope you’ll feel ready to to the same.
Giusy Versace
Con la testa e con il cuore si va ovunque. La mia storia
It’s 2005 when, driving on a business trip, Giusy Versace loses both her legs, ripped off by crash barriers, and aged only 28 she is forced to rebuild her life from scratch. Her initial shock and dismay don’t break her though, and slowly her zest for Life and her faith help her heal and improve, and she’s able to walk again with prosthetic legs. But Giusy has grit and doesn’t stop here, indeed she starts training and ends up competing at the Paralympic Games, becoming the first Italian woman athlete to run with both prosthetic legs. Giusy’s story is tough, painful (it’s easy to cry, when you read it), but extremely inspiring. It helps us remember not to waste time on foolish things and complaints, and to be grateful for what we have and that, unfortunately, we are used to take for granted, such as our legs and a body that allows us to DO.
***
Nicolò Govoni
Bianco come Dio
The author here tells about when, at a very young age (he’s still young) chose to volunteer at an Indian orphanage (today he’s mainly at Samos, looking after refugees children). Nicolò Govoni opens his heart to us, in the most moving manner, and lets us in the intimate stories of these children, who despite the hardship carry inside their heart such hope and zest for life we should admire and take as an example. The author’s aim is to tell readers the reality of things, not only on the Indian side (the orphanages situation and the government issues), but also on the Western side, with a focus on “volontourism”, a common practice through which many organizations nowadays prosper and numerous people clear their conscience, condemning these children to countless abandonment issues. Leaving aside the bitter aspects of this book, by reading it we mainly feel a strong impetus to make our (and others’) life more significant, making a difference and changing the world.
NOTE: The author’s earnings from the book’s sales will go to the orphanage so if you feel like doing your part to change the world, you can start from here.
***
Mollie Moran
Aprons and Silver Spoons: The Heartwarming Memoirs of a 1930s Scullery Maid
During my UK holidays, in the wonderful bookstore “Mr B’s emporium of reading delights” in Bath, I came across Mollie Moran’s memoir about her youth when, in the 1930s, she worked at first as a kitchenmaid and then as a cook for some rich English families. It’s a very pleasant reading and it feels like being face to face with Mollie, drinking a tea together and listening to her story. Plus, Mollie “jumps out of the page”, revealing herself as a naughty little girl first and then a young, brave, ambitious woman, full of life and proactive: ultimately, a woman everyone’d love to have as a friend. Other than being shiny and self-confident, one of the best qualities of Millie is that she is not ashamed of her job (unlike many other girls in the same situation). The book is an important testimony of the past, a time where great changes took place, and it gives us precious information and teachings about the quality we should recover, such as taking responsibility for our job and do the best job we can, even when we don’t like it, or how to find the pleasure of real cooking, making a dish from scratch (no tinned, ready-to-cook or forzen products). The book also reminds us to be grateful (gratitude again!) for the social progress that has been made: though nowadays we have other issues, we are reminded of how,after WWI the soldiers who survived the war but were incapable to work because of injury of impairment ended up on the street, with no one to look after them nor disability pensions.
