Gaia Amman – An Italian Adventure – The book launch

Yesterday I went to my first book launch party. The party wasn’t for one of my books. If that would have been the case, I would have been too drunk today to write a blog post. Something like that would have been a huge cause of celebration and, in true Romanian style, I would have celebrated for three days and three nights. No, the party was for the launch of fellow writer, Gaia Amman’s  An Italian Adventure (The Italian Saga) (Volume 1).

I met Gaia over one year ago, after joining a local writing group. I liked her from the very beginning, for several reasons:

• One, as soon as she introduced herself, I realized she was an European expat. Since I’m an European myself – “expatriated” to the US about sixteen ago – it’s only natural that I felt a special connection to her. It doesn’t matter that she’s Italian and I’m Romanian. We were born on the same continent. That had to count for something, right?
• Two, Gaia’s very smart. She is a Biology professor at a local college and, although I’ve never seen or heard any of her lectures, I’m willing to bet that she’s a very good teacher. In all our writing group sessions, she’s engaging, witty, perceptive. Her feedback is spot-on and very helpful: she tells you what doesn’t sound right and she gives you suggestions on how to make it better.
• Three, her writing is really good. I’ve heard someone describe An Italian Adventure as a “modern day Tom Sawyer with a female lead character.” That’s an accurate statement if not about the story, at least about the storytelling style: fast paced, humorous, insightful, and relatable.

I’m proud of and happy for Gaia. I have seen first-hand some of the hard work she put into the making of An Italian Adventure. It takes a lot of sweat, blood, and determination to become a published writer. Multiply that by a factor of at least ten and you get an idea of what it takes to be a good writer. Gaia is both and I am glad to have been part of her special day and her book launch party. Especially since I received a signed copy of her book.

Thank you, Gaia, and congratulations again. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the books in your Italian Saga.