Love and War in the Apennines

Like most of Eric Newby's writing, this book is excellent. It is his story after the Italian Armistice when POWs were released into the local area. Newby had been captured in a failed raid with the SBS, and by bad luck had broken his ankle a few days before release.

More than anything the story he tells is of the generosity of the local Italians who assisted Newby, and other POWs, sheltering them, providing food and drink, assisting them in moving from place to place, always at great risk to themselves. The German army were active nearby, searching for the escaped POWs, and the Fascists had soon regrouped and were threatening death to those who were aiding the allies.

In his story, aided throughout by Wanda, his future wife, Newby is forced to move to more and more remote locations in the Apennine Mountains. From hiding he goes to working clearing rocks in a field in order that he can provide some return to the poor farmers he lives with. However, as the danger increases for those assisting him, he must move further, staying for a time at the high altitude camp of a shepherd, bore two local families band together and build him a place to stay by himself. Of course they must return almost daily with food.

Newbys freedom ends when he is finally recaptured, this time by the Germans, but his book ends with an epilogue in which he returns to meet some of those who he spent time with, some twelve years later. It is a real triumph for the human race that events such as this happen.

As always Newby writes in an incredibly engaging way. Even when he is of on a random tangent, the writing is so enjoyable that the strange nature of his topic doesn't matter. He writes honestly and realistically, not making himself the centre of the story, but quite rightly, those risking much more to help a stranger.

Five stars.