Four Seasons in Rome: On Twins, Insomnia and the Biggest Funeral in the History of the World

Doerr is not an accomplished narrator: he has a narrow vocal range, drops his voice at the ends of sentences, and articulates words so carefully as to undermine the conversational flow of his fine writing. But all that said, the audio edition of this memoir is saved by his genuine and infectious sense of curiosity, awe, and wonder that is as evident in his voice as in his words. On the day his twins are born, Doerr is offered a grant to spend a year at the American University in Rome working on what will become his Pulitzer Prize%E2%80%93winning novel All the Light We Cannot See (2014). In Rome, while he and his wife are slugging through and delighting in their sons%E2%80%99 first year of life, he falls in love with Roman history, historians, art, ancient sites, mountains, trees, and the neighbors and shopkeepers who befriend his family. A Scribner paperback. (Sept.)