Happy Holidays!

I wish to everyone happy holidays!

Anna Maria Polidori

Talking into the Typewriter Selected Letters 1973-1983 by Christina Stead with an introduction by Hilary McPhee

Talking into the Typewriter Selected Letters 1973-1983 by Christina Stead with an introduction by Hilary McPhee a book by Melbourne University Publishing Limited presents the latest decade by this beloved writer seen as letter-writer.
Once her husband died in 1968, alone, Christina lived in poor health, without money, drinking too much, missing her husband, enjoying the company of her family.
At first letters were compiled for publication by her friend Ron Geering.
Many letters including notes and greeting cards from a voracious letter-writer as Stead was during her life, and in particular once her husband William Blake died and she understood that it would have been impossible to re-meet with simplicity her American connections and friends, she replied to every letter received with joy, enthusiasm, writing about books, writers, political views. This one is a selection of drafts of  letters and cards, sent to different people. Stead loved to rewrite letters before posting them.
An epistolary book speaking about creativity, books, travels, literature, policy, last part of the life.
What I love the most of Christina Stead as a letter-writer is her spontaneity and that "being there" for her connections with all herself.


Anna Maria Polidori

On the Couch A Representative History of the Analytic Couch from Plato to Freud by Nathan Kravis

On the Couch A Representative History of the Analytic Couch from Plato to Freud by Nathan Kravis published by MIT Press is an intelligent  and captivating book. Absorbing, interesting original, enthralling this volume is not only the story of the psychoanalytic couch, a method started by Freud, so that the patient "couldn't see" the psychoanalyst while he was "telling" him his problems in a relaxation state, but it is a cultural and historical trip of the couch starting with Jewish, Greek and Romans and what it meant to them the recumbent posture, in particular when they ate or searched for some relaxation.
The born of another beloved furniture like the sofa in the XIX century, the necessity of portable and invalid furniture because of wars and TB without forgetting  the cultural meaning of the couch, what the couch represents in psychoanalysis and the debate psychoanalysts "live" regarding the couch other thematics of the book like also curiosities involving Freud and his special couch.
This volume is an aesthetic trip through sculptures, pictures, paintings by Canova, Titian, Picasso, Renoir and many other immortal creatives of the past representing women, men on the couch, without forgetting funny cartoons by some New York's magazines.

Wonderful, original, visual book!


Anna Maria Polidori

The Da Vinci Campus and its experience with Susan Fransisca

I knew the MIT at first because of Walden Schmidt (Ashton Kutcher) of Two Men and Half and later because of Sheldon Cooper Big Bang Theory. Plus because of the articles of the Boston Globe.

But...I didn't wait for a surprise like this one. One day I had just received a catholic magazine when visiting  the page of my city  what I read? A student of the MIT was at Umbertide? Much better than to discover that your favorite actor is in the area, or that your favorite band will sing at your birthday, I started to call the school for arranging an interview.

I met an enchanting atmosphere and the desire of sharing with passion what students and teachers are doing. I found a healthy place that I would suggest to all your children if you live in the area and if they love math. physics, or if they want to study languages, because oh boy! the Da Vinci is extraordinary. I don't have other words for describing it.

That night I didn't sleep. To me the idea of meeting a great brain was too exciting. Boston and Cambridge are cities I feel a lot because I established with the time contacts, I live Boston with an immense love, it would have been a great day.

I was living a pretty stressing existential moment and I was so sad and this one was and unexpected joy and a good reason for a moment of escapism and a splash in the unknown. And yes, while I was at the Da Vinci there was a moment in which I thought that I was becoming like a dinosaurs. Lost in my books, with a PC still with dial-up connection it was great to discover what an excellence the Da Vinci is.


In Italy best schools are not private ones but public ones in general and everyone can go proud of a high-school with great potentialities, donating to their students so many tools for understandi the present and the future. A future in continuous evolution. 
 Enjoy this article.

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It's a sunny and beautiful day this Tuesday 25th, when I drive to Umbertide, italian city in the center of Italy for meeting one of the most beautiful minds of the MIT Susan Fransisca a senior student researcher in the field of artificial intelligence and machine learning, in the city and in the Da Vinci Campus thanks to the GPL, Global Teaching Labs proposed by the italian MIUR Ministry of Education University and Research last October.

Some MIT's students thanks to their preparation afforded to Italy on Jan 8th for "helping" local teachers  during their lessons, sharing  important information with them and their colleagues.

Twenty-one italian public schools involved in the GPL the only Campus selected for Region Umbria called also the Green Heart of Italy the prestigious Da Vinci Campus.

Umbertide is a city devoted to foreigners. More than 100 families are from UK, USA, Australia, Ireland and there are more than 2200 muslim in the city.

A charity created by some British and American ladies called Books for Dogs supports with success a local shelter located to Lerchi. They bring progress and dignity in the structure selling used books, DVDS, clothes, and many other items.

Once at the Da Vinci I discover a relaxing and at the same time stimulating reality.
Happy students, happy teachers, the headmaster Franca Burzigotti tells me she studied in that school, the taught there and now, eventually, she ended up to become the headmaster from more than a decade. She is happy and she can't complain at all because her students, more than 1000, are good people and don't give problems.

For trying to stimulate their students to read much more Burzigotti tells me she created special mini-libraries  points in every floor of the school. "You can see. Students pick up what they want.
Plus we have started the digitization of our library, thanks to the help of 4-5 staffers of our school. Students accesses this service online with our tablets. We go proud of our library. It contains a debate point where teachers and students spend time discussing of interesting topics."

The Da Vinci section of "Liceo Scientifico" as it is called in Italy the most important preparatory high school for university involving subjects like math, physics, presents, I discover diversified branches for every taste.

The "Scientifico" passes through the Cambridge course, to the linguistic or socio-economical course, but students can also "pick up" human sciences or applied sciences.

Another part of the Campus is dedicated at the ITI where students are formed for working directly after the high school with efficiency if they don't want to go to the university and branches in this case are mechatronics and energy.

The IPC's branches are Computer Science and linguistic.

I visit the Labs where Susan spends her days with teachers and students with Giuseppe Giorgi staffer of the Da Vinci and great Cicero.

I see a reality in motion, creation of products, models, ideas, demonstrations of the laws of Gay-Lussac. There is fertile imagination, harmony and relaxation between students and teachers and a wonderful place where to become good men and women.
I meet Anna, a girl with some problems, followed with devotion and attention. "We do appreciate and love her a lot" confirms the teacher.

Ms Tironzelli of the Lab Biology is teaching at some students of the Cambridge course.
"They follow english lessons without troubles."
I ask to the students how many hours of english they attend.
"We study three hours of english, then other two ones with a mother tongue teacher and then we study various topics in english."
I ask to these students if they want to stay in Italy once they will complete the high school.
"No, we want to go away."
Where would you want to go?
"Boston" is their answer.
The teacher, smiling says me that they are enchanted by the presence of Susan, a girl everyone appreciate a lot.
These students during the summer-time spend weeks in foreign countries where english is the first language spoken. This summer has been chosen Belfast. They have been in the past to Dublin and Cambridge.

Scientific instruments at the Da Vinci are new and the best ones. 
I see microscopes with cameras, LIM blackboards  connected with PCs in every classroom so that it is possible to save lessons sharing them later with students.
PCS are Windows 10. The Da Vinci organizes courses for externals for ECDL, the European Computer Driving Licence.

In a Lab there are different new 3-D printers and a plotter , in another a teacher explains me he brought from home his old 3-D printer for being fixed. "It's 7-8 years old. We ordered pieces from China. Look at these ones. Let's hope for better" explains with enthusiasm.

At the ITI I see where prototypes born everyday. The most touching one a little shooting ball machine for a student in a wheelchair with the desire of playing basket ,  thanks to the Baskin project.

Another classroom enchants me with the model of a beautiful little house. The teacher tells me that that one has been a project created by a student of the fifth year.

"Thanks to the structure of the house and these wires we can think at the house in its complexity and visibly. Wires for electricity, water, but also for alarms, and many other options and connections."

Another stunning project the one of a model of a greenhouse . "In this project we thought at the aspects that a good greenhouse should have from water to warm, with the chance of opening the roof if warm is too much. It's a centralized and creative greenhouse."

I enter in a classroom where Susan will help teacher Trombettoni with her lesson. A student is connected via Skype.
"Guglielmo is sick but he choose to follow this lesson as well. Thanks for being with us, Guglielmo."
The teacher explains that with the PC on her desk she follows the PCS of all her students.

Once my tour in the various labs ends I return to the office of the headmaster for my meeting with Susan Fransisca.

A girl of apparently great simplicity, big warm smile, she smiles most of the time, she checks her smart-phone for messages continuously, she wears a necklace with a cross.  I ask if she is catholic.
Followed like a shadow by Sonia Bartocci,  a lady who shared with her most of the time, following our interview as well, she confirms my suspects. "Yes, she is catholic and she also attended the mass two weeks ago."
Sonia continues: "She didn't sleep in my house, she had her own independent apartment, but we shared most of our time together, meals, good Lord she is a robust fork for sure, she eats everything and with great appetite. One day we went to Tuscany. She celebrated her birthday here cuddled by everyone and this past week-end she decided to flying to Paris for meeting some friends."

Susan Fransisca's life has been intense, wonderful and plenty of satisfactions.

She told me that she thought she had a special gift in math when she started to take part at the International Mathematical Olympiads reaching important scores and winning bronze and silver medals.

"I left Indonesia for studying in Lawrenceville, NJ for three years, and then I was accepted at the MIT."

I ask for the atmosphere of cities like Boston and Cambridge.

"They're cities plenty of students and culture thanks to the Universities and you see everywhere students studying. Including during week-ends" she says smiling.

Susan is not new at this experience of student/teacher that she considers funny.

"Last year I have been to Mexico as a student/teacher. In general before we leave we participate at some courses regarding the culture of the country where we will spend our time in, how to interact with students, without forgetting materials we want to share with students and teachers."

Susan visited Italy in the past in the classic tour loved by foreigners: "I have been to Milan, Venice, Florence. This one is my first time in Umbria."

Susan's future is clear. She will become a researcher.

I ask her something about the MIT: "It will be my last year as a student. The motto of our Institute is: Mens et Manus so it says all. It's pretty learning by doing. The atmosphere is academic although everyone is excited for what we are doing."



The best approach for a sunny future.


Anna Maria Polidori

21st-Century Oxford Authors Robert Browning Selected Writings Edited by Richard Cronin and Dorothy McMillan

21st-Century Oxford Authors Robert Browning Selected Writings Edited by Richard Cronin and Dorothy McMillan is a beautiful tome born with the intention of presenting a great instrument of knowlege of Browing and his poems to students, teachers and common people.
In this book also some of the most important letters he wrote during his life.
Browning was a first and only child, born on May 7 1812 at Camberwell. His dad was a collector of old books and it's not wrong to saying that he experienced a privileged homeschooling. He started to compose pretty soon.


Fertile, creative, you will discover in this anthology  his dramatic monologues. Browning was a master of the genre.

I thank Oxford Press for this beautiful book.


Anna Maria Polidori

Ciao, Fabrizio

An angel with a wonderful smile, under the semblance of a gentleman,  with the treats of a man of another time,  the spirit of a kid enchanted by the life returned to Heaven this Monday.

60 years ago God sent him on Earth with a mission: to present smiles, joy happiness and enchantment to everyone he would have met.

Wonderful character,  harmonic, gentle, educated, nice, good with everyone like a common TV viewer, since I was little, I want to remember Tandem, later important TV programs like Telethon Italia, I Fatti Vostri, Scommettiamo Che? L'Eredità,  you have been part of that life I spent watching intelligent TV programs.

Thanks.


Your legacy is immense and your cordiality and enthusiasm for the life  never forgotten like also your generosity.

Many condolences to the family.


Anna Maria Polidori

Packing my Library An Elegy and Ten Digressions by Alberto Manguel

Packing my Library An Elegy and Ten Digressions by Alberto Manguel by Yale Press is the story of his immense library given away by the owner and his wife when they were still settled in France in 2015 and they decided to moving away and a celebration of this library and all  libraries of the world, not forgetting the main protagonists: books.

Alberto Manguel, best-selling author and bibliophile will soon introduce you to his immense library.
He describes it in all its magnificence.
At first he discovered shelves plenty of children's books when little, thanks to his parents. The most read and beloved classics.
Later he built book by book his library.
Each library "tells" his owner, affirms Manguel. His books, his tastes, and where the life has brought him or will bring him. Books read by reader influences his life as well. I agree.

But not only private libraries speak to us: also public ones where everyone can borrow books home.
The author confirms that he has been tempted of keeping books he borrowed home from public libraries because he fell in love for them.

Public libraries are crucial points where people find informations, read, surf the web.

A public library located in a certain city meets the exigencies of its readers and its cultural tradition offering certain literature, and each public library will "meet" along its path different motivations, tastes respect to a library of another city or country.

Manguel analyzes the advent of eBooks considering them a good instrument although he prefers an old-fashioned copy of a book because of the physical contact and same he does with dictionaries a bit "lost" at the moment because of new technologies, but when he was little a passionate instrument for discovering meanings, new words. A door into the knowledge.

Packing and unpacking his library meant when he moved somewhere a lot of help because Manguel accumulated 35.000 volumes.

Manguel treats history, celebration and later departure of the important and legendary library of Alexandria of Egypt with its main protagonists. It is still unknown while later it disappeared.

Although he "lost" his library because he decided to moving from France to an apartment on Manhattan Upper West Side Alberto Manguel received soon the offer for becoming the director of the National Library of Argentina. Born in Buenos Aires, he didn't live for a long time in Argentina but he replied enthusiastically at this offer.

This book is for all book lovers of this world.

Highly recommended.

Anna Maria Polidori