Very interesting list, Violet! Thanks for inviting me to vote, although I'm afraid I haven't read enough of them to do other than vote for the ones I've read. I was wondering, though: what about Herman Wouk's War and Remembrance. Wasn't it set partly in Italy, where the American Jewish young woman had gone to stay with her ex-pat uncle resulting in both of them being captured? I read it so long ago but, still, it and the one before are favorites.

Is not A Farewell to Arms during WW1, not WW2?

I do love anything about Artemisia, but she's about 300 years before WWII. :)

Kristy wrote: "I do love anything about Artemisia, but she's about 300 years before WWII. :)"

The book's a metafiction wherein the main story is an author recovering from the rubble of WWII, under which her Artemisia manuscript is irretrievably buried, by mentally recreating said manuscript from scratch. Artemisia may be there, but the main narrator's firmly in the midst of WWII Italy.

Thanks for the invitation to vote. But I feel very humbled when I see how little I've read off this list!

Jan wrote: "Very interesting list, Violet! Thanks for inviting me to vote, although I'm afraid I haven't read enough of them to do other than vote for the ones I've read. I was wondering, though: what about He..."

I haven't read it, Jan but it sounds eligible and intriguing.

Brent wrote: "Is not A Farewell to Arms during WW1, not WW2?"

Yep. Should be removed but I'm not a Librarian so can't do it. Thanks for your great list, Brent.

Aubrey wrote: "Kristy wrote: "I do love anything about Artemisia, but she's about 300 years before WWII. :)"

The book's a metafiction wherein the main story is an author recovering from the rubble of WWII, under..."
Thanks for clearing that up, Aubrey. Definitely going to read this as it combines two of my deep interests.

Violet wrote: "Brent wrote: "Is not A Farewell to Arms during WW1, not WW2?"

Yep. Should be removed but I'm not a Librarian so can't do it. Thanks for your great list, Brent."

Removed 'A Farwell to Arms'.

Violet wrote: "Aubrey wrote: "Kristy wrote: "I do love anything about Artemisia, but she's about 300 years before WWII. :)"

The book's a metafiction wherein the main story is an author recovering from the rubble..."

My pleasure, Violet. The work needs more love.

Thanks for removing A Farewell to Arms, Audrey. I've just ordered Artemisia.

Although I am ignorant of Italian writing, and I know you love the air war stuff, I wondered if, and expect that there probably are, some Italian novels that focus on their own aces and campaigns. I know some Italian air units fought in the Battle of Britain too.

Jim wrote: "Although I am ignorant of Italian writing, and I know you love the air war stuff, I wondered if, and expect that there probably are, some Italian novels that focus on their own aces and campaigns. ..."

Not that I'm aware of, Jim. It seems Italians stopped writing about the war about thirty years ago. There are more films - Mediterranean, The Night of San Lorenzo, Wild Heart and Life is Beautiful spring to mind - but Italian novelists don't seem at all interested in the war. they leave it to the Americans and Brits to write about it.

What about Captain Corelli's Mandolin?

Jim wrote: "What about Captain Corelli's Mandolin?"

I didn't like it much when I read it. The author is British. Also it's set in Cephallonia rather than italy though it's about Italians.

Mussolini's Italy features in The Observer with mentions of The Way Back to Florence, Early One Morning and In the Wolf's Mouth: A Novel - http://www.theguardian.com/books/2016...

Relative Values The first part of the book opens in Autumn 1934 and ends at the time of the liberation of Florence in 1943. In the second part of the book, set in 1984, the grandson of the protagonist of part one pieces together what happened - and why.

Great. Thanks Phil. I've added it to the list.