L’Americana
A quiet fortune
Every August, a box arrives on my front porch, marked “fragile,” although there’s nothing breakable inside. Just perishable. A dozen ears of corn from Iowa. I’m always hesitant to open [...]
Language of life
Like many people, I started riding a Peloton exercise bicycle during the pandemic. I’m not a huge fan of indoor exercise, but jogging gets tedious, and it's hot in Florida. [...]
The art of teaching
I never thought that I would end up teaching, certainly not based on my halting early efforts. The summer after tenth grade, I taught tennis to little kids. Though I [...]
For love of waxing
Columnist Kristine Crane again turns back the clock to her Italian days, but this time the emphasis is on vanity and cultural expectations.
Home sweet homes
A few mornings ago, just before I awoke from a dream, I told myself this: No one wants to move back, not even me. But there will always be some [...]
Study abroad… at home in Iowa
I’m spending the fall in Iowa as part of my doctoral degree program. It’s like study abroad — but in my hometown. The university has rich traditions in writing and [...]
From fearful to fearless
I became a health reporter in Rome years ago. Not officially. That would come a couple of years after I moved back to America, science reporting degree and journalism job [...]
Violin lessons
Every time I return to my father’s house in Iowa, I try to whittle down my childhood belongings. I’m down to a few boxes of papers and books, along with [...]
A royal education
Every once in a while, my graduate journalism school posts an article about the Italian aristocrat Beatrice Borromeo Casiraghi, a fellow alumna. I’m always drawn in. She attended the school [...]
Bound and determined
When I got pregnant nearly four years ago, I was at a crossroads in my life. I’d just been accepted into a two-year writing residency in Vermont and it seemed [...]
Anything but coasting
I’ve never been a thrill-seeker. I’ve even been called a stick-in-the-mud. As a fourth grader at my school’s annual carnival, they had to stop the Tilt-A-Whirl for me because it [...]
Becoming my grandmother
It’s often said that women become their mothers. Ever since my mother died twelve years ago, I’ve noticed how I’ve become increasingly like her, from the big things to the [...]
Author, Associate Editor
Kristine Crane
Kristine Crane, who writes the “L’Americana” column, lives and writes in North Central Florida. She was formerly a Fulbright scholar and journalist in Rome, where she helped found “The American.” She is originally from Iowa City.