Frances Mayes grew up in Fitzgerald, Georgia, and attended
Randolph-Macon Woman's College and the University of Florida. She is a
poet, essayist and professor of creative writing at San Francisco State
University. She relocated to Cortona, Italy after she bought and
renovated a rundown Tuscan farmhouse, Bramasole (literally, "yearning
for the sun"), in 1990. Her memoir, `Under the Tuscan Sun: At Home in
Italy' was published in 1996, as was named a New York Times Notable
Book of 1996, and was followed by a second memoir, 'Bella Tuscany.' Her
books of poetry include 'Sunday in Another Country,' 'After Such
Pleasures,' 'The Arts of Fire,' 'Hours,' 'The Book of Summer,' and 'Ex
Voto.' She is also the author of 'The Discovery of Poetry,' a college
textbook. She divides her time between Cortona and San
Francisco.
My bestselling poetry book sold -- let's see -- probably around 2,000 copies... 'Under the Tuscan Sun' just passed 1 million copies, and it's been translated into 18 languages.