At the age of 21, Nicoletta travels to Rome to find her mother, Olga, who abandoned her long ago. Nicoletta finds her at Casetta dell'Orso, a charming little restaurant owned by Olga's husband. The staff of bespectacled gentlemen welcomes Nicoletta warmly, but Olga's reception is not so pleasant. Olga has never told her husband that she ever had children--and he must never know. In exchange for Nicoletta's playing "the daughter of an old friend," Olga offers Nicoletta a place to live and an apprenticeship at the restaurant. Nicoletta fits in well among the unique personalities at Casetta dell'Orso. She gets along particularly well with the kindly headwaiter, Claudio, a divorced man who, after years, has still never taken off his wedding ring. As Nicoletta's feelings for Claudio become complicated, she finds a sympathetic ear in Olga, leading the estranged pair to form a friendship neither expected. But as they grow closer, the pressure exerted by the secret they share becomes too much to bear. -- VIZ Media

In this volume, Claudio reminisces about when he was a young, insecure waiter just getting his feet wet. Vanna gets to the bottom of why Teo’s stubborn lack of ambition prevents him from living up to his full potential in the kitchen. A woman running a streak of bad luck finds cheer when Gabriella introduces her to the magical ambience of Casetta dell’Orso. And finally, a mysterious young woman arrives with an important message for Lorenzo. -- VIZ Media

Go Home with a Handsome Italian Waiter Buona sera! Welcome to Casetta dell’Orso, a quaint little restaurant in the heart of Rome. The food’s delicious, but the handsome staff of bespectacled gentlemen is the real draw. Follow these dashing men home and witness their romances, heartaches, hopes and dreams in this delightfully whimsical continuation of Natsume Ono’s beloved Ristorante Paradiso. Go back to the beginning, when the owner Lorenzo was just opening Casetta dell’Orso. His wife Olga’s particular preference for a certain bartender inspires Lorenzo to hire an entire staff of gentlemen in glasses. Watch the cranky-but-kind Luciano juggle babysitting duty and the advances of an amorous customer. Witness handsome playboy Vito meet a healthy young college student who will eventually become his wife. All this and more awaits you, just beyond that discreet restaurant door... -- VIZ Media

Take home a handsome Italian waiter. Buona sera! Welcome to Casetta dell'Orso, a quaint little restaurant in the heart of Rome. The food's delicious, but the handsome staff of bespectacled gentlemen is the real draw. Follow these dashing men home and witness their romances, heartaches, hopes and dreams in this delightfully whimsical continuation of Natsume Ono's beloved Ristorante Paradiso. In this volume, Claudio reminisces about when he was a young, insecure waiter just getting his feet wet. Vanna gets to the bottom of why Teo’s stubborn lack of ambition prevents him from living up to his full potential in the kitchen. A woman running a streak of bad luck finds cheer when Gabriella introduces her to the magical ambience of Casetta dell’Orso. And finally, a mysterious young woman arrives with an important message for Lorenzo.

Covering genres from adventure and fantasy to horror, science fiction, and superheroes, this guide maps the vast terrain of graphic novels, describing and organizing titles to help librarians balance their graphic novel collections and direct patrons to read-alikes. New subgenres, new authors, new artists, and new titles appear daily in the comic book and manga world, joining thousands of existing titles—some of which are very popular and well-known to the enthusiastic readers of books in this genre. How do you determine which graphic novels to purchase, and which to recommend to teen and adult readers? This updated guide is intended to help you start, update, or maintain a graphic novel collection and advise readers about the genre. Containing mostly new information as compared to the previous edition, the book covers iconic super-hero comics and other classic and contemporary crime fighter-based comics; action and adventure comics, including prehistoric, heroic, explorer, and Far East adventure as well as Western adventure; science fiction titles that encompass space opera/fantasy, aliens, post-apocalyptic themes, and comics with storylines revolving around computers, robots, and artificial intelligence. There are also chapters dedicated to fantasy titles; horror titles, such as comics about vampires, werewolves, monsters, ghosts, and the occult; crime and mystery titles regarding detectives, police officers, junior sleuths, and true crime; comics on contemporary life, covering romance, coming-of-age stories, sports, and social and political issues; humorous titles; and various nonfiction graphic novels.

Editorials, op-eds, and other writings by a memorable newspaperman. The winner of more awards than any editorial writer in the Albany Times Union’s history, Jim McGrath was both an Albany institution and a keen observer of the world beyond his beloved adopted city. When he died in 2013 at the age of fifty-six, the newspaper lost a writer who combined a passionate advocacy for society’s most vulnerable people with a scathing disregard for the elite whose actions created an underclass in the United States. His writing was often elegiac, but his take on his adopted home state of New York and his beloved Albany was variously bemused, witty, irreverent, and indignant. He could relate to the plight of the minimum-wage worker as easily as he could talk to a US senator, and he feared no one. His editorials and commentaries charted many of the most critical issues in New York and the country: the death penalty, civil liberties, gay rights, historic presidential campaigns, the economy, terrorism, and more—all with an incisiveness that remains relevant, if not more so, in the present political era. In addition to his editorials and op-eds, I’ll Be Home contains essays, critiques, and other writings that have never before been published, as well as appraisals of his work and life by former colleagues Rex Smith, Fred LeBrun, Dan Lynch, and others. The book is both a tribute to a memorable newspaperman and an insider’s perspective on politics and life through the lens of an editorial writer, a position that Jim described as “a great seat at a really weird show.” Jim McGrath was chief editorial writer at the Albany Times Union. He was named the Hearst Editorial Writer of the Year several times, and also received numerous first- and second-place awards by the New York State Associated Press Association, and two first-place awards by the New York Newspaper Publishers Association. His widow,Darryl McGrath, is an Albany journalist and the author of Flight Paths: A Field Journal of Hope, Heartbreak, and Miracles with New York’s Bird People, also published by SUNY Press. Howard Healy is a copyeditor and proofreader for the New York State Bar Association; he retired as editorial page editor of the Times Union in 2008.

For the final course of Gente, a senator pondering a political maneuver arrives at an unexpected conclusion over a delicious meal at Casetta dell’Orso. A notorious playboy finds himself enthralled by the sophisticated Savina, a Cassetta regular. Lorenzo finally reaches the point in life where he needs glasses, and silent Gigi accepts an invitation from a young lady. Enjoy the dolce conclusion to this charming story. -- VIZ Media