Johnson’s businessman husband Noel would not understand the subtleties of the situation going on here in Florence.Īlthough Elizabeth Spencer wrote several other well-regarded works, she will likely most always be remembered for this novella. Fabrizio might behave like your stereotypical Italian guy, but stereotypes arise in the first place because there is some truth of them, And of course Mrs. What mother would not want the best for her daughter even in these difficult unusual circumstances? The language difficulties between Italian and English might conceal her daughter’s problems to some extent. The author Elizabeth Spencer displays a sure grasp of human nature in this novella. Should she encourage Fabrizio in his romantic intentions for Clara or should she discourage him? That is the question. Deep in her heart of hearts, Mrs Johnson hopes that Clara can lead a normal life despite her injury. The accident with the horse has not affected Clara in any physical way nor her striking beauty. Due to a childhood injury when she was kicked in the head by a Palomino horse, Clara has the mental age of a child of ten. Johnson and Clara meet the entire Naccarelli family. : The Light in the Piazza (9780786176373) by Elizabeth Spencer and a great selection of similar New, Used and Collectible Books available now at. He buys and sends elaborate gifts to Clara, never mind that Clara can speak no Italian and Fabrizio speaks very little English. From the get-go, he is entirely smitten with Clara, and in the following days he shows up wherever Mrs. As Clara hurries to see a historical marker, she bumps into 22 year old Italian Fabrizio Naccarelli.

Margaret Johnson and her 20 year old daughter Clara are in Florence as part of their extended stay in Italy as tourists from North Carolina.

Now the musical is being put on by theater groups nearly everywhere. Set in Florence, Italy, the unique captivating plot of ‘The Light in the Piazza’ is likely the reason that it has inspired both a movie in 1962 and a Broadway play, a musical no less, in 2005 based on the novella. ‘The Light in the Piazza’ by Elizabeth Spencer (1960) 110 pages

Light in the piazza elizabeth spencer