Villa Coco: A Novel

Pulitzer Prize winner Andrew Sean Greer (“A great chronicler of our times.” –San Francisco Chronicle) showcases his wit, sophistication and deep knowledge of focaccia in this magical and madcap tale of a young man who takes an unspecified job with a charismatic elderly Baronessa at her crumbling villa in the Tuscan hills

Broke and directionless, our young man (the chosen moniker of Villa Coco’s narrator) takes a job in the Italian countryside as the all-purpose assistant (technically, the employment ad asked for “adjutant”) to Lisabetta, known to her friends as Coco, a strong-willed, wealthy widow of great local renown. Technically, our young man is an archivist, charged with cataloguing Coco’s extensive and eclectic collection of art and artifacts, but what are his actual duties? He is charged with ridding the house of a marten, whatever that is, locating the antediluvian septic system, entertaining an endless carousel of guests (from bohemian painters to elderly princesses to handsome nephews), attending a funeral in order to make off with the urn, and not inadvertently sabotaging Coco’s great and final plan—to locate the lost love of her life and be reunited before it’s too late.

Told with the signature wit, insight, and deeply felt humanity that made Less an international phenomenon, Villa Coco is a dazzling, sun-soaked ode to life itself—a romp through a youthfully self-constructed emotional obstacle course, a meditation on what we give and take from others, and a bawdy Mediterranean ballad about becoming who you’ve always wanted to be.

ANDREW SEAN GREER is the bestselling author of seven works of fiction, including Pulitzer Prize winner Less and its companion Less is Lost. He is the recipient of the Northern California Book Award, the California Book Award, the New York Public Library Young Lions Award, the O Henry award for short fiction and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the New York Public Library. Greer lives in Venice.

“[Greer] captures the allure of la dolce vita—Renaissance paintings and books, bottles of Lambrusco wine and gelato—all bathed in a buttery Tuscan light.”
—TIME

“Feel[s] like a vacation.”
—Vogue

“Witty [and] stylish . . . Villa Coco is all but frescoed with figurative language, and Greer’s seemingly effortless storytelling belies the careful craft of his metaphors and similes. . . . This is a fundamentally pleasant book for unpleasant times, the kind of novel in which a car breaks down and that turns out to be exactly what should have happened. As Greer ultimately suggests, true charm is something you have to try on as you might a dead man’s suit, until what feels counterfeit becomes truly your own. It often begins in fraud and grows into a funny story—sometimes passing, fleetingly, through sorrow on the way. In that regard, the relentlessly charming Villa Coco is its own proof of concept.”
—The Atlantic

“[Villa Coco is] packed with warmth, wit, and charm [and a] steady supply of humor. . . . [A] perfect summer cocktail [of a novel].”
—The Boston Globe

“What a strange thing. A smart, fizzy novel about how right life can be. In Tuscany! With olive groves! . . . [Villa Coco’s] easygoing warmth gathers into a smile of a coming-of-age tale.”
—Chicago Tribune

“[A] charming escape . . . The luminous setting and message about living life to the fullest make this story read like a balm for the soul.”
—Real Simple

“Andrew Sean Greer’s Villa Coco will bring the flavor of an Italian idyll to your summer reading.”
—Vogue.com

“A most delightful and unlikely romantic comedy . . . If you think ‘charming’ is a dismissive, diminutive compliment, wait till you see that term restored to its original enchantment. Villa Coco isn’t mere ice cream; it’s stracciatella gelato served in one of the most beautiful places on earth. . . . A faint aroma of Alice in Wonderland wafts through these pages, reinforced by Greer’s elegant felicity with non sequiturs. . . . In addition to the gorgeous setting, there’s also a delicious cast of quirky servants, relatives, and neighbors who must be making Masterpiece Theatre producers salivate.”
—Ron Charles

“A smart, sweetly wistful comedy . . . Goes down like fine olive oil.”
—NPR

“Villa Coco has the summery, entertaining feel of someone writing whatever he feels like writing. [Pulitzer Prize winner Greer has] earned the right to have fun. . . . 266 pages of pure pleasure . . . Greer has such a light, nimble touch — the color of a dress or the studied messiness of a room conveys a lot — that Villa Coco reads like a grand adventure, not a lesson. Long story short: I have no notes, other than that I wish it were longer.”
—Minnesota Star Tribune

“[Greer says he] intended to write a ‘charm novel,’ and he has succeeded, con sprezzatura.”
—Los Angeles Times

“Travel to Italy without leaving your reading chair with the Pulitzer Prize winner's latest.”
—People

“Greer’s latest hilarious, heartwarming novel is a sun-soaked coming-of-age story.”
—Marie Claire

“[A] warm, witty escape, this time with olive oil and mild chaos.”
—Oprah Daily

“A bawdy, sun-soaked romp about finding your true self at any age.”
—The Boston Globe

“If you take one book to the beach with you this summer, let it be Villa Coco. . . . As charming as Greer’s Pulitzer-prize winning Less . . . Villa Coco, laced with wistful, playful nostalgia, reads like youth itself.”
—Electric Lit

“As honest, hilarious and heartbreaking as life itself.”
—NPR

“About as close as you can get to the Italian countryside without booking a flight. . . . It’s witty, a little soapy, and positively sun-soaked – all qualities you look for [in] a beach read.”
—Them

“Inspiring . . . Think The Devil Wears Prada meets Call Me by Your Name.”
—Air Mail