This complex, seductive novel - set in Italy in WWII as the Germans retreated towards Rome leaving bombs and booby traps in their wake - is so much more than the love-story portrayed in the film. Yes, there is the badly burnt pilot but as important are the lives of his young Canadian nurse, the Sikh who she loves and the thief turned intelligence agent, Caravaggio. I thought it one of the most beautifully written books I have ever read.
(James Baker - bwl 91 Winter 2019 ) |
