The Xenophobe's Guide to the Italians ^{4th Ed.}

Xenophobia — an irrational fear of foreigners, probably justified, always understandable.

Xenophobe's® Guides — an irreverent look at the beliefs and foibles of nations, almost guaranteed to cure Xenophobia.

'Italy's laws would be perfect without the Italians, who pay little attention to most of them. For example, although seatbelts are compulsory, few Italians actually wear them (in some parts of Italy there is even a roaring trade in T-shirts with seatbelts painted on them).'

'The Italians know that although other countries might be more powerful and better organized than Italy, in reality the people in the rest of the world behave the same way they do and are just as corrupt as they are, only sometimes they're smarter at not being caught.'

Xenophobe's® Motto —

Forewarned is forearmed.

• Nationalism and Identity
• Character
• Behaviour
• Manners
• Family Matters
• Obsessions
• Leisure and Pleasure
• Sense of Humour
  
• Culture
• The Eat-alian Way
• Health
• Politics
  
• Business
• Systems
• Crime and Punishment
• Language
  

Well, it gives a short tour of the Italians, but I can't say that it makes me understand them better (and I worked with Italians in the North of Italy).

It's OK as an introduction, but you need something better very fast.