elsadicriscienzo's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
sarah_dietrich's review against another edition
3.0
A mixed reaction to this book - plenty to like, and plenty to criticise.
Very personal accounts of living through WWII in Italy are contrasted with matter-of-fact lists of historical events, to good effect. Our characters aren't heroes, they don't perform great deeds, they're just hungry and scared. The human toll of the war if felt by bringing the lense in tightly on just a few characters.
The book is also overly long, and preachy, and predictable. Definitely suffers from being too long, I skimmed quite a bit of the last third.
Very personal accounts of living through WWII in Italy are contrasted with matter-of-fact lists of historical events, to good effect. Our characters aren't heroes, they don't perform great deeds, they're just hungry and scared. The human toll of the war if felt by bringing the lense in tightly on just a few characters.
The book is also overly long, and preachy, and predictable. Definitely suffers from being too long, I skimmed quite a bit of the last third.
dalumores's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.75
kristymartino's review against another edition
5.0
I can’t tell if this was the best thing or the worst thing to read during a global pandemic quarantine. Regardless, it was a story that was woven across generations, war, and “peace” brilliantly. An unflinching record of all of man’s shame and spoils.
c2pizza's review against another edition
5.0
It's unsurprising that I've never heard of this book given how devastatingly brilliant the picture it paints of the powerful is. Throughout this whole book, I felt a soft, ubiquitous sadness, which at times was amplified to an intense sadness, nauseating, perpetual. And I believe that feeling came from the failure of humanity to live up to its potential laid out from the very first page until the last. Instead of enjoying the beauty of nature, the offer of comradeship, the love of pets, etc., they are wasted in misguided pursuits of and abuses of power that lead the everything burning down to the ground at an accelerating pace. Fuck fascists the most, by the way. As you can see, I agree with Carlo Vivaldo regarding many topics, but I digress.
Another comment only coincidentally related to the first: The best part of George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire (yet to be seriously adapted for television) is that he brings the turmoil of everyday people to the forefront in a land ravaged by near endless warfare. It's extremely rare to see a war from anyone but the soldier/warrior's perspective (or occasionally the conscientious objector's perspective) but instead to get it from someone with no stakes in the fight, someone who just wants to live a quiet life, but whose life is uprooted by the senseless, useless fighting of others around them. Those books aren't finished yet, and they are a fantasy novel, so I can't rave enough about a finished work, written beautifully and passionately, that does the same thing even better, and is based in our world where the disappointment of humanity is all the more tangible.
This is an amazing hidden treasure of a book.
Another comment only coincidentally related to the first: The best part of George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire (yet to be seriously adapted for television) is that he brings the turmoil of everyday people to the forefront in a land ravaged by near endless warfare. It's extremely rare to see a war from anyone but the soldier/warrior's perspective (or occasionally the conscientious objector's perspective) but instead to get it from someone with no stakes in the fight, someone who just wants to live a quiet life, but whose life is uprooted by the senseless, useless fighting of others around them. Those books aren't finished yet, and they are a fantasy novel, so I can't rave enough about a finished work, written beautifully and passionately, that does the same thing even better, and is based in our world where the disappointment of humanity is all the more tangible.
This is an amazing hidden treasure of a book.
lisamoony's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
reggieblack's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.25
deelia's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0