North of Naples, South of Rome. by Panin Tullio (Lilliput. £6.99)

Paolo Tullio, who lives in Ireland, returns each year to his native region in Southern Latium, and his book is a rich mixture of history, travel and topography, celebrations of food and wine, records of conversations and encounters, and some hard headed analysis of politics and the Italian character. Even the region's fauna and flora are not ignored for instance, it seems that as fewer people cultivate vines and olives, the wild boar have multiplied, although the edible species of birds have mostly been destroyed by intensive shooting. A genuine warm breeze of Italy blows from these pages.