A love affair with Rome

2nd January 2021

She Seduced Me: A Love Affair with Rome by Mark Tedesco.

This short volume about Rome is effusive and the author is clearly passionate about the city. He is keen to introduce his readers to Rome from a variety of different perspectives, delving under the facade of the city, drilling down to its real heart.

Each chapter offers a unique insight into history, culture, people’s lives and religion. The author first went to Rome as a seminarian in his late teenage years. This enabled him to gain understanding of the religious ley lines of the city and from there he goes on to build his book, referencing his 8 years of personal experience living in the city.

He conveys very well the polar opposites of dis-ease and acceptance, how the modern city has to accommodate the ancient ruins that each year attract millions of tourists. He interviews locals and foreigners who have been drawn to the city, and across several chapters he poses questions to delve deeper into the people, their psyche and the city. There are several interviews, some of which are quite insightful, others offer one sentence responses. At some level it somehow reminded me of dialogue one might experience in a foreign language class.

He quips about Bus 64 which runs from Termini Station to the Vatican and seems to be a magnet for light fingered thieves and for those who want to hone their skills in frotteurism. He visits Nero’s Domus Aurea, which has been buried for centuries beneath rubble, and has been excavated to reveal a colossal palace complex, erected after the great fire of Rome in 64AD. I visited a couple of years ago and his descriptions beautifully took me right back.

He ponders what life might have been like for two Roman Senators, whom he names Titus and Flavius and imagines the conversations they might have had in the Baths of Caracalla (built 212-216AD), chatting as they move through the Caldarium pool, the Tepidarium, culminating in the cold waters of the Frigidarium, (typical of Roman bathing rituals). He gives them voices of the time, gossiping about other senators, what exercise they may take and discussing their choices of food for their next meal (much food was laced with Garum, a fish sauce made from fermented fish – thankfully no mention of mice, however!!! 😉).

He introduces his readers to favoured restaurants, one of which Tripadvisor describes as “Elegant, French fine dining restaurant with a frescoed ceiling, run by nuns who sing every night“. Both have great reviews but you will have to buy the book in order to find out what they are called (I have made a note of them for my next visit)!

The book is a really nice way to get a feel for the complexity of the city. The writer behind the book is, however, a bit of a enigma – he starts out clearly with a strong religious disposition but that seems to fall by the wayside. He comes to the city in later years in the book with his male partner and there is a chapter where he and Ted observe and comment on the other visitors they see (ok, they gossip) and they ruminate on why Americans stick out so much when they are travelling in Europe. Because the book is a collection of very personal observations and experiences, I guess it felt like the proveribial elephant in the room that the writer gave away so little of himself, yet dropped in the odd very deeply personal element. I was intrigued to know more!

The book could – I feel – have benefited from a more robust editing hand to make the collected stories feel more cohesive. There is quite a mix of writing styles which, in many ways, is actually very charming but in others can make the rhythm of reading feel a little jarring – at times it is light-hearted, at others it is informative and on point, occasionally didactic. It was sometimes difficult to know whether the author was in ancient or modern Rome. There were some typos and the use of AD / CE and BCE was not consistent – these issues can all be remedied when the book is reprinted.

Overall this collection of observations will prove a varied introduction to anyone who wants to learn to negotiate the Eternal City. You really cannot overlook the author’s love of – and passion for – the city in his writing, it just bubbles through the text; he absolutely carries the reader with him.

Tina for the TripFiction Team

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