Product Description

On turning 40 Peter Moore discovers la dolce vita on the road from Milan to Rome in the company of a 1960s Vespa...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #23393 in Books
• Published on: 2005-05-02
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 359 pages

Synopsis
It was the late night Tai Bo fitness commercial warning him that life comes to an end after 40 that prompted Peter Moore to chase a boyhood dream. To go to Italy and seek out its celebrated dolce vita from the back of a Vespa. But it couldn't be just any old Vespa. Peter wanted a bike as old as he was and in the same sort of condition: a little rough round the edges, a bit slow in the mornings perhaps, but basically still OK. And it had to have saddle seats. And temperamental electrics. And a little too much chrome. The sort of scooter you'd imagine a sharp-suited, Ray Ban-wearing young Marcello Mastroianni riding. Her name was Sophia. From picnicking in the Italian alps and rattling through cobbled hilltop to gate-crashing Frances Mayes's villa and re-enacting 'Roman Holiday', Vroom with a View is as much a romance as a travel adventure. For not only does Peter win the woman of his dreams, he falls for a side of Italy others rarely see. Along with Sophia, of course...

From the Back Cover
He was an intrepid Australian author fast approaching forty. She was a fading Italian beauty from the sixties. They first met on the Internet and together would spend one unforgettable summer travelling from Milan to Rome. Only one thing stood in the way of perfect love . . .

Sophia was a motor scooter.

After a late night Tai Bo fitness commercial warns him that after forty his life will be over, Peter Moore decides to pursue a boyhood dream sparked by watching old black and white movies of Sophia Loren - to putter around Italy on a 1960s Vespa in pursuit of la dolce vita.

But it couldn't be any old Vespa. With the big day just around the corner, Peter wanted a bike as old as he was and in the same sort of condition - a little rough round the edges, a bit slow in the mornings perhaps, but basically still OK. And it had to have saddle seats. And temperamental electrics. And a little too much chrome. The sort of scooter you'd imagine a sharp-suited, Ray Ban-wearing young Marcello Mastroianni riding.

From picnicking in the Italian alps and rattling through cobbled hilltop towns to exploring tumbledown seaside villages, gate-crashing Frances Mayes's villa and re-enacting Roman Holiday, Vroom with a View is as much a romance as a travel adventure. Not only does Peter sweep the woman of his dreams off her feet, he falls for a side of Italy others rarely see, along with Sophia, of course ...

'Moore has a parched dry wit, the solid brass cojones of a true traveller and a rare eye for the madness of the wider world.' JOHN BIRMINGHAM

'Peter Moore is the genuine article, a traveller's traveller.' FHM

About the Author
Peter Moore:
Peter Moore is a freelance advertising copywriter and website producer who works only to support his insatiable travel habit. He has written for various Australian and British publications, including The Times and Sydney Herald, and it the author of three acclaimed travel books, The Wrong Way Home, The Full Montezuma and Swahili for the Broken-Hearted as well as the classic alternative travel guide, No Shitting in the Toilet. When he's not on the road living out of his trusty backpack, he lives in Sydney with his collection of souvenir plastic snowdomes.

Customer Reviews

Dolce Vespa
Funny how this book makes you ponder the worth of buying an old Vespa, even though you know you won't It also makes you think seriously about buying a heap of Kinder Surprises. Dozens? Hundreds? Well enough to ensure you get one with a green Vespa in it.
The Italian turista lot should market this book, a great magnet to draw more tourists to the Italian countryside, although I suspect that job has been done already by Maye and co. This though, would make a better film than Maye's 'Under the Tuscan Sun'. It combines romance, roads, red wine and quirky characters. Reading it, on the other side of the world in July, is a good way to shake off the cold and drab winter. Dunno if I'll ever do the Vespa ride - I like modern engines that don't break down - but nice to dream about it.

The Joys of 2 stroke motoring (in sunnier climes!)
A lovely book with interesting facts about the history of the Vespa and its social impact on Italy's society. I enjoyed his descriptive, light hearted and amusing narratives about his travels and the charismatic characters he meet as he scoots through the back roads of Italy to Rome. A great summer read on a par with Chris Stewart's 'Driving Over Lemons'.

Better than the crazy frog!!!!
This is the third of Peter's book that I have read now and found it the same as the other two, I was not able to put it down. His problems with the Vespa (Sophia) in the early days are hilarious. He really manages to get across people's feelings and emotions towards him as he winds his way across Italy.
Thoroughly enjoyable.