Actually, I do. But no matter how much you think you know, there are always gaps in your knowledge. Italy in World War Two is a great example. We know about Il Duce and the trains running on time, and Patton racing Monty up the peninsula but most of us know very little else. And Italians are loathe to talk about it.
There is an extraordinary new novel by Mark Sullivan entitled Beneath a Scarlet Sky that details the story of Pino Lella, a brave teenager who guided hundreds of Jews over treacherous mountainous terrain to safety in Switzerland. He then became a spy, bravely risking his life to pass German secrets to the Allies.
The story is true, and Pino still lives near Milan. Sullivan chose to tell the story as a work of fiction to emphasize the emotional truth, rather than dry data and chronology. It has all the elements of a thriller and although you know from the start that Pino survives, the same cannot be said for friends, family and the love of his life. After the Nazis are defeated, the partisans commit atrocities in revenge that are shocking in their brutality.
It’s available at a very reasonable price on Amazon. I can’t recommend it highly enough.
