Halfway to Each Other
How a Year in Italy Brought Our Family Home
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- $10.99
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
The remarkable true story of a couple on the brink of separation who finds love again while spending a year in Italy with their family.
Tired, empty, and disillusioned with married life, Susan Pohlman was ready to call it quits. As soon as she and her husband, Tim, wrap up a business trip in Italy, she planned to break the news that she wanted to end their eighteen-year marriage.
During their last day as they walked along the Italian Riviera, Tim fantasizes aloud that, perhaps, they could live there. Susan initially dismisses the notion as nonsense but is inexplicably overwhelmed with a desire to give the marriage another try. Defying all logic, the couple find a school for their children and sign a lease for an apartment. Maybe a life in such a charmed setting could help them find their way back to each other.
Together with their fourteen-year-old daughter Katie and their eleven-year-old son Matt, they trade in their breakneck Los Angeles pace for adventure and a slower, more intimate lifestyle slipping out of the constraints of the traditional American Dream into a dream of their own.
Instead of seeing each other for fleeting moments in the mornings and evenings, the family starts to spend their days together rediscovering the simple joys that bring texture and meaning to all our lives. Travel with them as they stumble upon new customs, explore medieval alleyways, browse street markets, befriend neighbors, learn to cook, and try a new language.
Halfway to Each Other is the remarkable story of an ordinary American family that inspires and offers hope that all of us who find the courage to listen to our hearts and follow our dreams can experience a new beginning.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
After nearly 20 years of marriage, the Pohlmans, in the final stages of divorce, decide to spend a year in Italy, a decision their "marital therapist called an elaborate scheme of avoidance at best." The resulting story is full of charm, Kodak moments, and tumult typical of Americans abroad. In Italy, the family faces daily challenges, like unraveling the mysterious bus system ("...something left over from the days of Mussolini?") and dealing with the government. Even the simple act of purchasing groceries is an exercise in frustration. But eventually, Susan and Tim adapt, learning how to be spouses again, and even friends. The family perseveres, pulls together, sheds some of their American patina, and learns a new way of life in a country known for a commitment to family. Not many mothers can boast a midnight swim with a 14-year-old daughter or dropping plans to ice skate with their children simply because they wanted to. The Pohlmans' adventure is the stuff that dreams are made of.
