About Nonno’s Italy
Italian Short Stories from Beginners to Intermediate — Learn Real Italian Through Captivating Stories from Turin to Agrigento, with Danny Notes & Exercises (A2–B1) (Italian Edition)
Your grandfather left Italy. Now, you’re going back.
Danny Russo is thirty-two, from Brooklyn, and speaks a little Italian. When his grandfather Salvatore died, he left behind an fading photograph of Agrigento, a Sicilian coppola — and a notebook filled with forty pages of recipes written in dialect that nobody in the family could decipher. Two years later, Danny books a one-way ticket to Italy and starts his journey in Turin.
Ten cities. Ten characters. Ten lessons in what Italian really sounds like.
From the aperitivo bars of Turin to the ancient Greek temples of Agrigento, Danny makes every possible linguistic and cultural mistake — and learns from every single one.
This book doesn’t just teach you Italian. It teaches you Italy. Written by an Italian language teacher who lives and works in Italy, Nonno’s Italy combines authentic cultural knowledge from the inside with years of experience teaching Italian to English speakers. The result is a book that feels nothing like a textbook — because it isn’t.
It is a story created for anyone who wants to learn Italian while being immersed in a real-life adventure, instead of just studying a grammar book.
What you’ll find in every chapter:
Immersive short stories in real Italian (A2–B1 level)
Cultural notes
The gesture — Italy’s unspoken second language
Danny’s cultural observation — Italy seen through American eyes
More than 250 essential vocabulary words with English translations and examples
Grammar in context — noticed naturally, never forced
Three exercises per chapter — comprehension, vocabulary, and open reflection
A proverb to close each chapter
Perfect for:
· Adult learners at A2–B1 level
· Italian heritage speakers reconnecting with the language
· Anyone planning a trip to Italy
· Readers who love travel narratives
Buy the book, and follow the author on social media:
Author Bio:
Olga G. is a teacher of Italian as a foreign
language. She lives and works in Sardinia —
one of the most beautiful and least
touristy corners of Italy — and has been
teaching Italian since 2018.
She holds the CEDILS certification from
Ca' Foscari University of Venice, one of
Italy's most prestigious institutions for
the study and teaching of the Italian
language. CEDILS is one of the most
rigorous qualifications available for
teachers of Italian as a foreign language.
With over 8,000 hours in the classroom,
Olga knows exactly what trips learners up —
and what makes them fall in love with
the language instead. She also knows
Italy from the inside: the aperitivo
ritual, the campanilismo, the unwritten
rules of the table, the weight of a word
like bella figura, the difference between
North and South that no textbook ever
quite captures.
Nonno's Italy grew out of a simple
observation: most Italian short story books
give learners language exercises wrapped
in a thin plot. Her students wanted
something different — a real story,
set in real Italian cities, with real
culture on every page.
So she wrote it.
She runs her own Italian language platform
at imparareitalianoonline.it — where she
shares resources, tips, and everything
she has learned about teaching Italian
to English speakers.
Nonno's Italy is her first book.
Volume 2 is coming soon.