Trama e riassunto di La Lozana andalusa

A chi è rivolto

Readers who love a talkative heroine, a crowded street scene and sharp comic dialogue will feel at home here. It suits anyone curious about daily life in Renaissance Rome and the sly ways people earn a living.

Che cos’è questo libro

What does a woman do when she arrives in Rome with only the proceeds of a ring? In this book she talks. Lozana, a quick-witted cook and beauty from Córdoba, turns her memory, her tongue and her knowledge of people into a living among courtesans, clerics, merchants and gamblers.

The Lusty Andalusian Woman was written by Francisco Delicado, an Andalusian living in Rome, and finished in 1524. It is told almost entirely in dialogue, in sixty-six short chapters. You get a street-level tour of Renaissance Rome, led by a heroine who sells cosmetics, charms and good advice, and who admits that deception helps her earn a living.

Questions about La Lozana andalusa

What is The Lusty Andalusian Woman about?

It follows Lozana, a witty woman from Córdoba who loses her lover and arrives in Rome with almost nothing. She builds a living from cosmetics, cures, advice and connections among courtesans, clerics, merchants and gamblers.

Who is Lozana?

Lozana is the main character, born Aldonza in Córdoba. The name means lively and lush, and people give it to her for her beauty and talk. She travels east with a merchant, then lives in Rome as a go-between and beautician.

Is The Lusty Andalusian Woman a true story?

It is fiction, though the author says he painted it from life and wrote it in Rome, finishing in 1524. Real streets, markets, customs and prices of the city fill the dialogue, which gives it a lively documentary feel.

What is the main message of the book?

The author says he shows the vanity and appetite of a great city so that readers may learn from it. Along the way the book celebrates a woman's ingenuity and gives a vivid portrait of survival by wit.