Local artist Rosemary Connelly to sign books May 26

Rosemary Connelly’s new travel diary, “Two Years in Italy,” is now available on Amazon.com in paperback and as a Kindle eBook.

Written about her experiences living in Italy with her late husband, photographer Bob Connelly, the book’s complete title is “Two Years in Italy: How two fifty-somethings retired and went to live in Italy to live cheap and make art.”

A reading and book signing will take place from 6:30 to 8 p.m., Thursday, May 26, at Mispillion Art League, 5 N. Walnut St., Milford. A limited number of books will be available for purchase.

While in Italy, Connelly wrote the blog Live Cheap & Make Art – Rosemary & Bob’s Italian Adventure. In her book, she has taken those blog entries and edited them, eliminated extraneous details, sharpened others, and cleaned up what she calls her stream-of-consciousness writing.

The blog name came from a conversation Rosemary had with Bob. He asked her what she wanted to do when they retired, and she said: “I just want to live cheap and make art,” meaning she wanted to live a simple life devoted to making and appreciating art, focusing on experiences and not accumulating a lot of stuff. It became the name of their studio and their life slogan.

With more than 60 color photographs and watercolors, “Two Years in Italy” it is the story of how Rosemary and Bob retired, sold their home in Phoenix, put their things in storage, got visas and went to live in Italy on a firefighter’s pension. They lived cheaply and simply, renting small furnished apartments in four different regions. Not completely fluent in Italian, they studied hard and were able to communicate and make friends. They drank cheap wine and ate fresh cheeses, pastas and pizzas. Rosemary sought her Italian roots and found ancestors dating back centuries. Their experiences encompassed discovering markets, cooking in tiny kitchens and attending festivals. They traveled by car, bus, train, plane and ferry, exploring every region with enthusiasm and a willingness to say yes to whatever each day brought.

“To be with this man I adore, on this incredible journey, is a gift. I long to accept what comes next without fear; to simplify our lives, and let go of THINGS, hoping we’ll be wiser, with a new perspective on life,” wrote Connor.

Written in journal format, the book describes their adventures in detail, sometimes looking forward, sometimes looking back, but always with excitement, joy, some frustration and a little heartache.

To learn more, contact Rosemary Connelly at rosemary@livecheapmakeart.com and go to livecheapmakeart.com.