Welcome to Litsy!

My February stats. Proud Shoes was the highest ranked, but the tagged book is so important right now.

Beautiful writing, without any sensationalism or exaggeration, telling what it was like to live through 1943 & 44 in Italy, first far enough from the fighting to be considered a safe place to evacuate children, then literally the front lines. Fleeing at a moments notice, on foot, with 4 infants, 23 children under 10, and various adults. Dealing with partisans, fascists and Germans, all armed, all wanting to take whatever food, clothes etc.

Rome in May of 1943. Would that I can be that sanguine!

I abandoned this book because my former history teacher told us that he didn‘t cover moussilini because of the r word, and that includes lots of cases of it in this book. This book is not safe.

Iris Origo writes this for herself, not for publication, in the years 1939-40, living in Italy and married to an Italian, but of British and American parentage she has a unique perspective on the war brewing in Europe. So well written that after finishing it, before writing this, I went online and ordered two more (tagged in comments.) I could do worse than take her as a model for how to get through the next regime. #LitsyAtoZ #letterC @Texreader

I know the print is small, but I wanted to give you the whole quote. Written in 1939 about Mussolini. But . . . Plus ça change, plus c‘est la même chose.

The diary of a woman whose mother was British, father was American, and husband was Italian. She lived in Italy and is writing during 1939-1940. In a fascist regime. I think there may be much to learn from this slim volume.

This is a remarkable book and incredibly well researched. The author vividly describes centuries of Naples' tumultuous history of art, mythology, social and political upheaval, and violent revolution, interspersed with his own anecdotes of living in the city.

This nonfiction book, which depicts daily life in a small Italian village during WWII, is quiet but moving. And important.

#HauntedShelf #BookRecommendation Team #HexesandCrows @Catsandbooks

Prompt: Yellow

Booked a holiday. Bought a book. Having an absolutely banging Sunday.