Anthologies#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Georgia Voices |
2000 |
Buy |
| The Best American Travel Writing 2002 |
2002 |
Buy |
Collections#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Sunday in Another Country |
1977 |
N/A |
| January 6, Quarter of Four |
1978 |
N/A |
| After Such Pleasures |
1979 |
Buy |
| The Arts of Fire |
1982 |
Buy |
| Gold Over Blue |
1984 |
N/A |
| Hours |
1984 |
N/A |
| The Book of Summer |
1995 |
N/A |
| Ex Voto |
1995 |
Buy |
Non-Fiction#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Peach and Glass |
1977 |
N/A |
| The Discovery of Poetry |
1994 |
Buy |
| Under the Tuscan Sun |
1997 |
Buy |
| Bella Tuscany |
1999 |
Buy |
| In Tuscany |
2000 |
Buy |
| Bringing Tuscany Home |
2004 |
Buy |
| A Year in the World |
2006 |
Buy |
| Greek Expectations |
2008 |
Buy |
| Every Day in Tuscany |
2010 |
Buy |
| The Passionate Traveler Journal |
2011 |
Buy |
| The Tuscan Sun Cookbook |
2012 |
Buy |
| Under Magnolia |
2014 |
Buy |
| See You in the Piazza |
2019 |
Buy |
| Always Italy |
2020 |
Buy |
| A Place in the World |
2022 |
Buy |
| Pasta Veloce |
2023 |
Buy |
Standalone Novels#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Swan |
2002 |
Buy |
| Women in Sunlight |
2018 |
Buy |
| A Great Marriage |
2024 |
Buy |
Frances Mayes is an American author, poet, and memoirist whose name has become nearly synonymous with Tuscany. Her memoir Under the Tuscan Sun (1997), about buying and restoring an old villa in Cortona, Italy, became a bestseller and was adapted into a popular film. The book launched a series of Tuscany-related works including Bella Tuscany, In Tuscany, Every Day in Tuscany, and The Tuscan Sun Cookbook.
Beyond her Italian writing, Mayes is also a poet with eight collections published between the late 1970s and mid-1990s, and a novelist with three fiction works. Her memoir Under Magnolia (2014) turns to her Southern roots, while A Year in the World and See You in the Piazza expand her travel writing beyond Italy. She has taught creative writing for many years and her book The Discovery of Poetry serves as an introduction to reading and writing verse.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many books has Frances Mayes written?
Frances Mayes has written 29 books across four series.
What was Frances Mayes's first book?
Frances Mayes’s first book is Peach and Glass, published in 1977.
What inspired Frances Mayes to write about Tuscany?
Mayes bought and restored a rundown villa called Bramasole in Cortona, Italy, in 1990. The experience of renovating the house and adapting to Italian life became the basis for Under the Tuscan Sun (1997), which was later adapted into a 2003 film starring Diane Lane.