Very Valentine ─ A Novel

從紐約下城到托斯卡尼和卡布里島
一段美侖美奐的時尚驚奇之旅
33歲大女生如何擺脫傻氣懵懂開發自己的藝術人生

華倫婷，紐約格林威治村「安爵里尼」鞋店的第三代，在姊妹中她說不上長得漂亮，也非頂尖聰明，還被人封為「搞笑女」。安爵里尼創立於1903年，以傳承工匠藝術、製作傳統禮鞋著稱，一年生產近三千雙鞋，是該村碩果僅存的家族公司，然而在全球化浪潮下漸漸不敵跨國名牌和低價鞋的競爭。
就在倒閉前夕，毫無藝術背景的華倫婷挑起重擔，憑著一股傻勁她參加了高級百貨公司的設計比賽，打算重振老店名聲，雖然外界不看好，但外婆早看出她的天分……她接受80歲外婆的建議，兩人前往手工鞋國度──義大利，希望藉由新的技術和素材打造一雙無與倫比的鞋。
南歐綺麗的風光、終身投入製鞋的頂尖工匠，以及義大利人的慢活哲學，讓來自紐約的華倫婷大雨初沐，她一筆一畫勾勒出鞋子的翅膀……然而在異國摸索之際，她那剛剛點燃的紐約戀情卻搖擺欲熄，華倫婷的設計是否真能奪下冠軍，解救安爵里尼，洗刷33歲仍一事無成的命運？
《穿手工鞋的女人》是一個華美饗宴，也是關於藝術天才被開發的故事，作者翠吉亞尼以其溫情、幽默之筆，述說一個平凡女孩如何運用創意巧思改造百年老鞋店，挽救它免於遭到企業吞噬。鞋店的創新，標誌著女孩華倫婷的蛻變，探索家與傳統的意義並體悟愛情的真諦。
而貫穿書中的義式哲學（天真樂觀、珍重生命、慢工出細活），更使讀者多少理解義大利時尚與美食能夠獨步全球的原因。小說另一方面如栩呈現格林威治村豐萃的文化，及其百年來演變。該區地位如同巴黎左岸拉丁區，是美國許多運動和文藝潮流的重鎮。

★本書中文版由「商周文化」出版。

'Meet the Roncalli and Angelini families, a vibrant cast of colorful characters who navigate tricky family dynamics with hilarity and brio, from magical Manhattan to the picturesque hills of bella Italia. Very Valentine is the first novel in a trilogy and is sure to be the new favorite of Trigiani's millions of fans around the world.
In this luscious, contemporary family saga, the Angelini Shoe Company, makers of exquisite wedding shoes since 1903, is one of the last family-owned businesses in Greenwich Village. The company is on the verge of financial collapse. It falls to thirty-three-year-old Valentine Roncalli, the talented and determined apprentice to her grandmother, the master artisan Teodora Angelini, to bring the family's old-world craftsmanship into the twenty-first century and save the company from ruin.
While juggling a budding romance with dashing chef Roman Falconi, her duty to her family, and a design challenge presented by a prestigious department store, Valentine returns to Italy with her grandmother to learn new techniques and seek one-of-a-kind materials for building a pair of glorious shoes to beat their rivals. There, in Tuscany, Naples, and on the Isle of Capri, a family secret is revealed as Valentine discovers her artistic voice and much more, turning her life and the family business upside down in ways she never expected. Very Valentine is a sumptuous treat, a journey of dreams fulfilled, a celebration of love and loss filled with Trigiani's trademark heart and humor.