Jeanne Marie Spicuzza has lived in L.A. for a decade now, but her ties to Milwaukee are as strong as ever.

The poet, writer, artist and performer comes from a prominent arts family in the city; the same family that gave the city post-Impressionist painter Francesco Spicuzza, Jeanne's great-uncle, and her aunt Sylvia, also a painter.

A few years ago, Spicuzza married her boyfriend, former Bodeans and Violent Femmes (and Oil Tasters) drummer Guy Hoffman. The two met while living on the same floor of the Shorecrest Hotel.

Now, in her new book, Spicuzza explores her relationship to another place.

"My Italia," published by her own Libri Publishers, collects Spicuzza's prose and poetry about her ancestral homeland. It is a love letter to a country she first discovered more than a dozen years ago.

"The year was 1996," Spicuzza recalls. "I was working on my MA in philosophy at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, but felt a stronger pull toward poetry, motion picture and the arts. My graduate advisor, Fabrizio Mondadori, always reminded me of my Italian roots.

"Walking through the Fine Arts building, I noticed a poster with an image of Florence and an invitation to study art history abroad -- sign me up! A few months later, my mom passed away. A devout Roman Catholic, she always spoke of the Vatican, and of Rome. I decided I must go!"

Not only did Spicuzza visit cultural centers like Rome, Venice, Florence, Siena, Padua and Assisi, she returned to Sicily and visited some of her family. There, as well as in the other cities she saw, she says, she felt connected.

"So much of my trip gave me a growing sense of identity and belonging, love and family, history, and the profound importance of the arts, the monumental value of that contribution -- beautiful art, beautiful people, incredible food, passion and religion! I had come home."

Spicuzza touches on most of these subjects in "My Italia," which starts with a memory of confessing her sins at St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City and ends with the line, "Everwhere in Italy, she is beautiful."

In between, she writes about her relatives in "Per La Mia Famiglia," Italian fashion in "(I want my) Dolce & Gabbana Dress" and wine in "Vine."

Many of the works are slices of daily life for a traveler, including the short and evocative "Italians Who Yell and Punch."

Spicuzza, who returns to Milwaukee for a visit this month, says Italy has remained a draw for her since her initial visit.

"I've traveled to Italy three times since, once with my sister Mary and my daughter Stephanie, another for my honeymoon with my husband," she says, "There's no place like Rome."

Copies of "My Italia" can be ordered for $9.95 at www.seasonsandamuse.com.