Title: Trapped in Tuscany Author: Tullio Bertini ISBN#: 0937832359 Cover Type: Paperback Year Published: 1998 Status: In Stock Buy this book

A retired lawyer and former intelligence officer. This personal memoir describes the six years that an American teenage boy spent with his Italian American parents caught by the outbreak of World War II in their native town in Tuscany. It is an indispensible contribution to the grass-roots, social history of wartime Fascist Italy. It's filled with the amazing details and realities of daily life, reflecting an intimate insight into the social life and customs of a small Tuscan town north of Florence. The story starts prosaically with an explanation of why the family has returned to Italy. It becomes an absorbing story building to a dramatic climax. The German Army attempts to "relocate" the villagers acting in preparation of the German defensive Gothic Line north of the Arno. The villagers escape by walking all night on trails through mountainous terrain to reach an Apennine valley probed by advancing American forces. Those forces are the all-black American "Buffalo Soldiers" of the famous 92nd Division. These dramatic events are told in a straightforward narrative style reminiscent of Hemmingway. The account is informed by the seemingly photographic memory of the man the boy grew to be. The maps and background presentation reflect the training of author Bertini's adult interlude in American Army Intelligence. It is a must read for those who want to know what is was like to be caught in the harsh realities of a war zone, and for Italian-Americans and others would enjoy a first-hand social history of survival in the Italy of World War II. I think Sophia Loren, remembering her childhood wartime experiences, would empathize and recommend this book. It is well organized with an index, a bibliographic reference and 26 pertinent photo illustrations.

J. A. Giordano, Stanford AB, JD, '56.

Price: $19.95
Status: In Stock