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History
History | Elsa Morante
"History" was written nearly thirty years after Elsa Morante and Alberto Moravia spent a year in hiding among remote farming villages in the mountains south of Rome. There she witnessed the full impact of the war and first formed the ambition to write an account of what history - the great political events driven by men of power, wealth, and ambition - does when it reaches the realm of ordinary people struggling for life and bread. The central character in this powerful and unforgiving novel is Ida Mancuso, a schoolteacher whose husband has died and whose feckless teenage son treats the war as his playground. A German soldier on his way to North Africa rapes her, falls in love with her, and leaves her pregnant with a boy whose survival becomes Ida's passion. Around these two other characters come and go, each caught up by the war which is like a river in flood. We catch glimpses of bombing raids, street crimes, a cattle car from which human cries emerge, an Italian soldier succumbing to frostbite on the Russian front, the dumb endurance of peasants who have lived their whole lives with nothing and now must get by with less than nothing.
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giulia.mosna
La Storia | Elsa Morante
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Mehso-so

3/5⭐
Ci ho messo un'eternità e in più punti mi sono quasi arresa, ma finalmente l'ho finito. Ho continuato a leggerlo principalmente per i personaggi, scritti in un modo che è impossibile non affezionarsici, anche ai più problematici. La trama procede molto lentamente ed è un susseguirsi di tragedie piccole e grandi. Troppo triste per i miei gusti (e ho adorato "a little life"). ?

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GingerAntics
History | Elsa Morante
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🤦🏼‍♀️ the word “history” has nothing to do with “his story”. I wish people would get that ridiculous idea out of their bloody heads. History is history no matter the age, location or gender. “Herstory” sounds ridiculous and actually makes life harder for historians that are female. LEARN YOUR ETYMOLOGY PEOPLE!!!
rant over
#rant #history #etymology #whyhistorymatters #whyetymologymatters

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TNbooklover66
History | Elsa Morante
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Saturday night. #amreading

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ladyclassics
La Storia | Elsa Morante
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Pickpick

Although it's been a hectic week, I got through this 657 page beast of an emotional tale! What a beautiful, raw, poignant story. The story is set in Rome, years 1941-1947. It follows the story of a partly Jewish Italian widow, raped by a German soldier and left with his son. It reflects the tragic lives of working class people who are struggling to keep hold of their lives and identities in the darkest years of the 20th century. Highly recommend!