[Italian Books] Two Great Books Based on True Stories

I have read two really good books recently and thought you might like them as well. 

It’s been a while since I wrote a post about Italian books and it’s great to be finally able to do it again. I have been reading a lot, as usual, but no books really worth mentioning. So I am happy to have finally found two very good books I am sure you will like!

The books I am referring to are from the same author: Viola Ardone. Ardone is a teacher of Italian and Latin from Naples who has an outstanding career as a writer. She became very successful with a book called Il treno dei bambini published in 2019. The book was followed by Oliva Denaro in 2021 and by Grande meraviglia in 2023.

I still haven’t read her latest book but I read and loved the first two and those are the ones I’d like to write about here. If you are unsure whether to read them or not because they are in Italian, you’d be happy to know that they are available in English as The Children’s Train and The Unbreakable Heart of Oliva Denaro. No matter the language, I highly recommend reading them because they are two very absorbing books – and a perfect summer read!

Besides the writing style and the story, what makes them interesting is the fact that both of them are based on true stories. So, while reading a fascinating and moving story, you’ll learn something more about Italian contemporary history.

Il treno dei bambini follows Amerigo, a seven-year-old boy from Naples who lives with his mother Antonietta. World War II has just ended and Italy, especially the south, is devastated. Amerigo and his mother live in extreme poverty, barely surviving on odd jobs like all their neighbors. But one day Antonietta learns of an opportunity to give Amerigo the chance to spend some time away from poverty.

The opportunity was a program by the Italian Communist Party that offered struggling Neapolitan families the chance to send their kids to Northern Italy to live with wealthier families during the winter. So Amerigo boards a train with many other poor children and crosses the peninsula to find a new life.

His new life includes plenty of food to eat, violin lessons, and school, among other things. Amerigo is really happy with his new life but this life is not permanent and at a certain time he has to choose: returning home to his real mother or staying and enjoying all the opportunities offered by this new life? The heartfelt conflict Amerigo is facing is one of my favorite themes of the book and his story is a moving reflection on the meaning of family and the choices you have to make to follow your destiny.

Oliva Denaro, the other book by Viola Ardone I read recently, focuses on the life of another young character, a girl this time. Oliva’s story is way darker and sadder than Amerigo’s but is similarly full of hope and possibility. The true story the book is based on is that of a young girl who, in a small village in Sicily in the 60s, refused to marry the man who raped her. At the time, il matrimonio riparatore was a custom, and refusing it was not an option for girls and women.

Growing up in the Sicilian countryside, Oliva is a lively young girl who is spirited and carefree. She loves to run around, spend time with her father doing chores commonly done by men, and live her life fully. She is perfectly aware that her life will change when she gets older and therefore resists growing up. Unfortunately, the baker’s son sets his sights on her and she is forced to grow up quite quickly.

This unwanted courtship forces Oliva to fight for the right to choose what she wants and to decide her destiny. Even though this is a radical rebellion, Oliva is supported in her choice by her father and by a few other characters with progressive ideas and this helps her make a life-changing decision, at a time and in a place when reputation was the most important thing for women.

If you read the book, you’ll love Oliva’s character, so full of bravery, intensity, desperation, and passion. The story is gripping and intense and it’s one of those books you simply cannot put down. It alternates between lighthearted and tragic moments and is a powerful coming-of-age novel you won’t forget too soon.

If you read Elena Ferrante’s novels, you’ll find a similar atmosphere and intensity in both books and you’ll love them undoubtedly. In terms of the Italian language, the writer uses a lot of regionalisms in both books, so you may find it a little challenging at first, but things will become easier as you get used to certain words.

[The Children’s Train had huge success in Italy and the story is so powerful that it became a movie by Netflix. Here is a teaser].

And you? Have you read some good Italian books recently?

If you are looking for interesting ways to practice your Italian daily, I’d suggest you check my program called Giorno dopo giorno, a daily Italian practice. 

If you sign up for Giorno dopo giorno, you will receive an email every other day for 365 days. Each email will contain a prompt, a little exercise, something to watch, read, listen or something that will gently force you to practice your Italian every day, making it part of your daily routine.