IM4 The Voice of the Violin (2003)
Page 20
page 226 -- Two; three billion lire' -- Roughly between PS690,000 and PS1,000,000.
page 227-- 'a few hundred thousand lire' -- A hundred or so pounds.
page 236 -- The hotel ... zoning regulations be damned --
Outside the Sicilian city of Agrigento, Camilleri's model for the city of Montelusa, stands the Greek Temple of Concord (440 bc, named retroactively), by far the best preserved of the ruins in this so-called Valley of Temples. In the modern age, against the protests of conservationists, historians and people of good sense, a large, unsightly hotel was built directly behind the archaeological site, right on the boundary line designating the perimeter beyond which it is now illegal to build -- a demarcation determined only after the hotel was erected.
Page 253-- Bagonghi the dwarf -- Bagonghi was a famous Italian dwarf who performed as a clown in circuses all over Europe and often wore clothes that were far too big for him.
Notes compiled by Stephen Sartarelli