Author Archives: Loretta Giacoletto

About Loretta Giacoletto

Loretta Giacoletto is an American writer of family sagas, mysteries, and contemporary fiction, all of which contain elements of crime. She divides her time between the St. Louis Metropolitan area and Missouri's Lake of the Ozarks where she writes fiction, essays, and her bi-monthly blog, Loretta on Life, while her husband Dominic cruises the waters for bass and crappie. Their five children have left the once chaotic nest but occasionally return for her to-die-for ravioli and roasted peppers topped with garlic-laden bagna càuda. An avid traveler, she has visited numerous countries in Europe and Asia but Italy remains her favorite, especially the area from where her family originates: the Piedmont region near the Italian Alps. - See more at: http://www.loretta-giacoletto.com

House Hunting in Italy

Posted on July 31, 2014 by Loretta Giacoletto

House Hunters International, yes! It ranks among my favorite cable TV shows, one that I have set to record the entire series. Who hasn’t watched at least one episode of House Hunters, whether that episode be U.S. based or any … Continue reading →

Posted in Family, Italian American, Italy, Lifestyle, television, Travel, Writing | Tagged buying houses in Italy, House Hunters International, Italy, Loretta Giacoletto, Loretta on Life, Northern Italy, Piedmont Italy, renovating old houses | Leave a comment

Making Cheese, the Italian Way

Posted on July 15, 2014 by Loretta Giacoletto

In the 1890s a young woman who lived in the Piemonte Region of Northern Italy sailed to America to marry a man she had yet to meet, an Italian immigrant who came from a village not far from hers. At … Continue reading →

Posted in Cooking, Dining, Family, Italian American, Italy, kitchen, Lifestyle, Travel, Writing | Tagged arranged marriage, Italian American, Italian immigrants, Italy, Loretta Giacoletto, Making Cheese, Making Italian Cheese, Piemonte, Piemontese | Leave a comment

Left My Heart in Italy

Posted on June 30, 2014 by Loretta Giacoletto

Still dealing with an annoying case of jet lag brought on by my recent trip across The Pond—one part of my brain holding on to images of Northern Italy, the other part struggling to play catch-up with the real life … Continue reading →

Posted in Cooking, Dining, Family, Food, Italian American, Italy, kitchen, Lifestyle, Travel, Writing | Tagged copper pot, jetlag, Loretta Giacoletto, Loretta on Life, Northern Italy, Piemonte Italy, Piemontese food, Polenta, traveling across time zones | Leave a comment

Missing

Posted on June 9, 2014 by Loretta Giacoletto

It first came into my house six weeks ago, an indispensable purchase I split into two manageable portions, one within easy reach of my fingertips, the other … the other … I could not recall where I put the other … Continue reading →

Posted in Family, Lifestyle, Writing | Tagged Loretta Giacoletto, Loretta on Life, Lost and Found, went missing | Leave a comment

End of a Generation

Posted on May 31, 2014 by Loretta Giacoletto

Since Hubby D and I were going to our lake house for the Memorial Day weekend, we paid our respects to the local cemeteries a few days early. This year we added one new grave—that of D’s 92-year-old Uncle J, … Continue reading →

Posted in Family, Friends, Italian American, Italy, Lifestyle, Travel, Wine making, Writing | Tagged British war bride, death in a family, Greatest generation, Italy, Loretta Giacoletto, Loretta on Life, Piemonte Italy, WWII, Yanks in WWII England | Leave a comment

Old Friends

Posted on May 15, 2014 by Loretta Giacoletto

I’ve mentioned this before, how I start each Monday through Friday with Imus in the Morning. Business News, you say, ho-hum. Not so fast, I say. Business news can be quite enlightening, especially when mixed with politics, entertainment, trash talk, … Continue reading →

Posted in Friends, Lifestyle, Writing | Tagged Diedre Imus, Don Imus, Fox Business News, Girls night out, Girls weekend, Imus in the Morning, Lake of the Ozarks, Loretta Giacoletto, Loretta on Life, old friends | Leave a comment

Butte Then and Now

Posted on April 30, 2014 by Loretta Giacoletto

Several weeks ago I received an email newsletter from the Butte-Silver Bow Public Archives that drew me to the Archive’s website. It was there I discovered two memorable quotes describing Butte in the early twentieth century. The town grew on … Continue reading →

Posted in 99-cent books, Bargain Kindle Fiction, Books, eBooks, Family, Italian American, Italy, Writing | Tagged 1930s, Butte Montana, copper mining, Family Deceptions, Great Depression, immigrants, Italian American, Loretta Giacoletto, Loretta on Life, Silver Bow and Butte Archives, Walkerville Montana | Leave a comment

The Family That Plays Together

Posted on April 15, 2014 by Loretta Giacoletto

Don’t get me started. I’ve written about Casalago before, our family retreat at Missouri’s Lake of the Ozarks. Casalago truly is a family affair, involving four of our five offspring and their spouses. Add to that the assorted offspring of … Continue reading →

Posted in eBooks, Family, Lifestyle, Reading, Writing | Tagged Collection of Givers and Takers, Family, Family retreat, Lake house, Lake of the Ozarks, Loretta Giacoletto, Loretta on Life, short story, weekend retreat | Leave a comment

Dream On

Posted on March 31, 2014 by Loretta Giacoletto

Do you ever dream about your high school or college years? My school dreams are always the same. I’m back home—too old for high school yet determined to relive those days I so loved. After changing clothes several times and … Continue reading →

Posted in Dreams, Family, Italian American, Lifestyle, Writing | Tagged dreams, interpreting dreams, Loretta Giacoletto, Loretta on Life, return to high school | Leave a comment

Dressing for Success, My Way

Posted on March 15, 2014 by Loretta Giacoletto

In my life before that of a writer I often interacted with the sales staff of upscale hotels. One of the sales managers left her position to sell high-end products from home via the Internet and telephone. “My plan is … Continue reading →

Posted in Family, Italian American, Lifestyle, television, Writing | Tagged comfort zone, leisure wear, Loretta Giacoletto, Loretta on Life, sleepwear, Walmart, Woobie | Leave a comment