Episode Five - Sicilian Emeralds

For centuries, Mount Etna has sent lava to engulf the towns and villages, terraced fields, orchards and vineyards on its slopes. But it still remains home to a quarter of Sicily’s population.

In her compelling new book, Helena Attlee combines travel writing with history, mythology, geology, gastronomy and horticulture to give a unique account of life in the shadow of the volcano the locals call ‘La Signora’, ‘Mamma’, or even ‘Mamma Grande’ - the dodgy big mamma who might nurture her people tenderly for years and then suddenly dish out a brutal punishment.

Helena becomes fascinated by the people who live on Etna and how they are able to accommodate the vast forces of such a turbulent landscape, exploring not only what the volcano takes away from them, but the gifts she gives them too.

In Episode 5 she learns about ‘Sicilian Emeralds’ – the bright green pistachios that grow in abundance on Etna’s lava landscape

Helena Attlee is the Sunday Times best-selling author of The Land Where Lemons Grow and Lev’s Violin.

Reader: Juliet Aubrey (Middlemarch, Primeval, Professor T, All Creatures Great and Small)
Abridger: Libby Spurrier
Producer: Sara Davies
Production Hub Co-ordinator: Dawn Williams
Music and Sound: Matt Bainbridge
A Pier production for BBC Radio 4