Un Giorno di Fuoco – Beppe Fenoglio

And this is a collection of short stories that means a lot to me but, I have to recognize, probably will mean nothing to most non-Italian readers (save maybe a few people from Southern France whose experiences and family histories may have been rather similar).

But, refusing to leave my bias aside, I think that Fenoglio might have been the best Italian writer of the 20^th century (surely Il Partigiano Johnny and Una Questione Privata deserve to be considered among the 50 most significant Italian books published over the last 100 years). True, his characters smoke a lot and might have values that are at times anachronistic and at times awfully politically incorrect by today’s standard, but Fenoglio manages to bring to life the common wisdom of the peasantry and their daily problems like no other author, and the short stories of Un Giorno di Fuoco (many of which have nothing to do with Resistance and anti-fascism) are no exceptions. 

I Ventitré Giorni della Città di Alba – Beppe Fenoglio

Now that I think about it, this was the first book by Fenoglio that I read, at a time in which I hadn’t really started reading yet, and when all the partisans in these short stories had the face of either Stefano Dionisi (who portrayed Johnny in the dramatically underrated movie taken from Il Partigiano Johnny) or of my grandfather (whom I’ve never met, and so was always pictured in my mind as the dashing 20-something year old that I saw in my grandma’s photo albums).

Every place has its proud moments, that get passed down and glorified from generation to generation, and in my region there are very few of those that can compare with the twenty-three days of existence of the Partisan Republic of Alba (one of the first cities in Northern Italy to be – momentarily – freed from Fascist rule).

Fenoglio was a supremely talented writer, able to strip the partisans of their myth and paint them for what they really were: ill-equipped scared little kids with their hearts in the right place. Needless to say, the six stories about the Resistance War in this collection have had much more of an impact on me than those on agricultural life in the period (still extremely interesting, just way less inspiring).

La Malora – Beppe Fenoglio

A rare work of art by Fenoglio that is not about Italian Fascism. It’s still about “my” hills though, so I’m obviously still biased. My heart clearly considers this (like pretty much anything else by Fenoglio) to be one of the best books of the Italian 20^th century. However, I do fully realize that most readers will (fairly rightfully) agree to disagree with me.

Because at the end of the day this book is about something so local, from the landscape of the area to the actual challenges faced by Agostino and his family, that it is probably really hard to understand for outsiders. I’ve grown up walking, hiking, and cycling on those hills, looking at the farms and fields that Fenoglio talks about. For anyone that hasn’t done this, the book is bound to be extremely dry, probably too grim, and the small accomplishments and huge hurdles in Agostino’s way are probably going to be almost incomprehensible.

Yet, for someone who has grown up on those hills and whose granddad was a “countryside serf”, as they called themselves, much like the novel’s protagonist, this is a work of incomparable beauty. And it seems hard to believe that those harsh hills are now on everybody’s mouths because of their wines.

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.

Il Partigiano Johnny – Beppe Fenoglio

This blog is making me realize how many books I’ve read about the Italian Resistance and, in general, about the fight against Fascism. This book, however, is probably my favourite one of all. And I am not just talking about books on anti-Fascism, I am talking about all the books ever written all over the world.

Of course, even in this case, I am dreadfully biased. The book is all set in the towns and on the hills where I’ve grown up. But, even as I try to be remotely objective about it, I think it’s an absolute work of art: the prose, mixing Italian and English, is still innovative even after 50 years, Fenoglio weaves global history, local history, and personal histories (fictionalized or not) with an inimitable display of skills and even the smaller characters manage to leave a lasting impression in the minds of the readers.

And I might be naive, or simply in denial, but I don’t think the ending is so obvious as most people take it to be.