Una Questione Privata – Beppe Fenoglio

This is one of the “Books of a lifetime” for me. Something that every Italian kid should read between the ages of 16 and 25. And then probably read again. It is, clearly, about Italian Fascism and the Resistance war.

It probably has had such an impact on me because so many of its scenes are similar to my old recurring nightmares, in which I ran away from Fascists cutting through the hills and fields around my parents’ house. Oddly, in his youth my dad had similar dreams, except that he used to run away on the town’s rooftops. Probably my granddad dreamt of something along those lines too – the problem for him is that he would actually have to run away from actual Fascists once day broke and he had to take messages and weapons to the local partisan bands.

The book is remarkably deep and poetic, starting from his main character (whose battle-name is Milton, clearly). His love for Fulvia is so epic that it makes the book look like a novel from another era. And probably the best thing is that, like some of the finest pieces of Italian art (like Michelangelo’s Pietà Rondanini) is is unfinished. Or is it?

Probably the greatest praise of the book was the one offered by Calvino, who argued that Una Questione Privata was the book his generation would have dreamt to write.