When I last wrote, it was spring, and now it is fall. It was an eventful summer, starting with a trip to Italy in May which lasted an extra 10 days because my husband and I both caught Covid. Luckily, we were barely symptomatic but we tested positive before we were supposed to fly home, when a negative test was still required. They changed the law four days after we arrived home.

Our isolation was not onerous because we were in a small seaside resort town, Sperlonga, halfway between Rome and Naples. Our innkeepers encouraged us to walk out and swim in the ocean, away from people, and we continued to enjoy the seafood and pasta, showing up early and eating outside at a small restaurant whose owner knew our situation. The welcome we felt when we first arrived did not falter.

Before the trip, I immersed myself in the work of Aminatta Forna and wrote a book review for The Threepenny Review, which recently appeared in print. The Threepenny Review

Toni Martin Writes