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Chrissie's Reviews > Naples '44
Naples '44
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Norman Lewis, the author of this book, writes in diary format of his time in and around Naples from September 1943 to October 1944. He served as a sergeant in the Field Security Service of the British Army Intelligence Corps after the city’s recent liberation from Nazi control.
Each day’s entry is short, sometimes only a paragraph or two. He writes of the chaos of wartime occupation and the sufferings of the Neapolitan people. Famine and disease, filth and vermin, rampant prostitution and rape, black-marketing, profiteering and banditry were daily concerns. His job was aimed at providing security for British troops. Occupation by the Allied forces failed to mete out justice and failed to provide the most basic public services.
In the confusion and pandemonium of the time, the Neapolitans� unswerving belief in saints and miracles is mind boggling.
All such is noted and recorded in detail.
The author imparts a vivid sense of time and place. He describes well not only the all-pervading chaos but also conveys his appreciation of the Neapolitans� spirit, generosity and courage which he observed.
Nicholas Boulton narrates the audiobook well. I would have preferred he read a bit more slowly. The Italian words go by in a blur, but I would not have understood them anyhow. The narration I have given three stars.
**
*Semi-Invisible Man: The Life of Norman Lewis by Julian Evans TBR
Each day’s entry is short, sometimes only a paragraph or two. He writes of the chaos of wartime occupation and the sufferings of the Neapolitan people. Famine and disease, filth and vermin, rampant prostitution and rape, black-marketing, profiteering and banditry were daily concerns. His job was aimed at providing security for British troops. Occupation by the Allied forces failed to mete out justice and failed to provide the most basic public services.
In the confusion and pandemonium of the time, the Neapolitans� unswerving belief in saints and miracles is mind boggling.
All such is noted and recorded in detail.
The author imparts a vivid sense of time and place. He describes well not only the all-pervading chaos but also conveys his appreciation of the Neapolitans� spirit, generosity and courage which he observed.
Nicholas Boulton narrates the audiobook well. I would have preferred he read a bit more slowly. The Italian words go by in a blur, but I would not have understood them anyhow. The narration I have given three stars.
**
*Semi-Invisible Man: The Life of Norman Lewis by Julian Evans TBR
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Reading Progress
July 16, 2019
– Shelved
July 16, 2019
– Shelved as:
wishlist-b
July 16, 2019
– Shelved as:
audible-uk
July 16, 2019
– Shelved as:
italy
July 16, 2019
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bio
July 16, 2019
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ww2
July 16, 2019
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history
July 20, 2019
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own-unlistened
July 20, 2019
– Shelved as:
2019-read
September 7, 2019
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Started Reading
September 8, 2019
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Finished Reading
Comments Showing 1-11 of 11 (11 new)
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Chrissie
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rated it 3 stars
Sep 08, 2019 08:36PM
I appreciate your tipping me off on good books, even if we do not always end up thinking exactly the same. Oh my, The Girl on the Via Flaminia reminds me of this--First Words: A Childhood in Fascist Italy. I often think back on First Words, which has me thinking maybe I should have given it more stars.
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No, I wasn't. First Words is NOT primarily about childhood experiences either. The situation in Italy, in both the cities and countryside during the Second World War, doesn't receive the attention it deserves.
Given the connection with your father, I think you should definitely read it.
A very good review Chrissie. I recommend the biography 'The Semi-Invisible Man: the Life of Norman Lewis', by Julian Evans. The best biography I've ever read.
I have now added Semi-Invisible Man: The Life of Norman Lewis to my wish-list. If I can ever get a hold of it I will definitely read it! Thank you VERY much for the tip, Greg.
Sounds interesting. Last year, I read a book on St. Joseph Moscati who lived in Naples. He died in 1927, but it would be very interesting to revisit the world of Naples in a time period close to the time he lived.
Siobhain wrote: "Sounds interesting. Last year, I read a book on St. Joseph Moscati who lived in Naples. He died in 1927, but it would be very interesting to revisit the world of Naples in a time period close to th..."Do you remember the name of the book you read? Do you recommend it?
Yes, it was Saint Giuseppe Moscati: Doctor of the Poorby Antonio Tripodoro. I wrote a review for it on Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ. I did not read it in the traditional way of reading a book, but read it over a school year as I delved into it bit by bit to share with my discussion group in youth ministry. We all learned a lot about St. Joseph Moscati, his life and times. There is not a huge amount in the book specifically about Naples, but an eruption of Mount Vesuvius during the life of St. Moscati gives you a sense of its proximity, and there is a good bit about the university and hospital where he worked as well as a good bit about the state of medicine at that time as well as the situation of the poor and their challenges in getting medical care. I do recommend the book. I donated it to our church library, but I was tempted to keep it because of the many prayers included at the back. As St. Joseph Moscati lived fairly recently, the book includes a lot of evidence from his cause for canonization including transcripts of testimony and quotations from letters that he wrote. It was very inspiring, and a nice alternative to the more typical Catholic saint who is usually a priest of a nun. St. Moscati purposefully chose to serve God as a single layman by using his skills as a doctor. He is known for his early successful treatments of diabetes. Thanks for asking about the book.
Oh my, that does cover many interesting topics. There is certainly an overlap between the two books--the poverty, the strong belief in the miraculous and saints as well as the eruption of Vesuvius. Thank you for explaining in depth.
I just went to request Naples '44 and saw that there is a documentary with Benedict Cumberbatch of the same name released by First Run Features in 2018. Are you familiar with that? I requested both the book and the film.
No, I knew nothing about the film.
