Diane Kinman

Franca Mercati was born into an immensely wealthy and well-connected Italian family in 1926, which means she was a teenager during the war. This is her story of that time, as told to her neighbour, Diane Kinman (she now lives on Mercer Island, WA).

I was interested in her story because she spent the war in Viareggio, Tuscany, which is close to where my husband's family lives in Italy, and is the beach community that we most often visit. She also spent time in the hills east of there, which is probably my favourite area of Italy. It was interesting to read about places I've been and the events that happened there 50 or 60 years before me. It was also interesting to compare her war stories with the stories that my in-laws tell. And finally, I learned interesting things about the war in Italy.

What I didn't like was that there was very little acknowledgement of the position of extreme privilege that she enjoyed. I don't begrudge her this privilege--one of great wealth and powerful connections--I just wished she'd told her story from an honest position. Yes, she was bombed many times and she saw people killed, and family members died, and she was hungry--I know she suffered. But her WWII still had the feeling of The Sound of Music, or some Disney-version of a princess's experience. Despite all she endured, there were so many times when her family advantage brought fortune that was inaccessible to the average Italian. The strongest example of this is when her soldier brother goes missing in action and she travels to Rome with her father, where they have a private audience with the Pope to ask for help in finding him. When her father has a later one-on-one with Il Papa, a monk takes Franca--who is an aspiring painter--on a private tour of the Vatican, including the Sistine Chapel.

Also, like her art work, the veracity of some of her details just doesn't ring true. The most egregious example is when she scolded the wicked Nazi SS officer, who was twice her size, into letting her father out of work detail. Yeah, ..... no.

I wish my mother-in-law could read English, because I'd love to discuss this book with her! (no, it's not translated).

Recommended for: This is no work of literature by any means. Still, for anyone who is interested in Italian life during WWII, it's a quick and interesting read. Also, it's heavily illustrated with black and white copies of Franca's art, and they're quite charming.… (meer)