Cracking. ( )

A mother in the Fascist years, World War II, and years following in Italy struggles to keep her family together and to cope with the turmoil of that time. ( )

De madonna van de bergen is een epische familiesaga voor de lezers van Elena Ferrante. Maria Vittoria is vijfentwintig wanneer haar vader thuiskomt met de man die haar echtgenoot zal worden. Het is 1923, en Maria is blij dat ze kan trouwen en haar ouderlijk huis in een klein dorpje nabij Venetië kan verlaten, met zelfgeborduurd beddengoed en een Mariabeeldje. Ze krijgt vijf kinderen en werkt met haar man in hun eigen winkeltje. Maar haar leven blijkt minder overzichtelijk dan ze had verwacht: barre tijden breken aan in het bergdorp. Je moet voorzichtig zijn, omdat onder het fascisme de regels bijna dagelijks veranderen. Maria beschermt koste wat kost haar gezin tegen de gevaren van buitenaf. ( )

The Madonna of the Mountains by Elise Valmorbida is the story of a woman and her family surviving in Italian countryside in the years leading up to World War II and during the war. The story is a quiet one, focused on the day to day struggles of life. That may be purposeful, but in this case, it leads to a very slow paced story. I keep waiting for more. Note that the ending to me seems to indicate that a sequel might be coming.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2019/02/the-madonna-of-mountains.html

Reviewed for NetGalley. ( )

What a coincidence that I would read this book right around the time my new neighbors moved in next door. They are Italians from Australia and they told me their grandparents immigrated there from Italy and the area they grew up in was full of Italians.

In Madonna of the Mountains, the story spans from the 1920’s to the 1950’s and portrays the life of a young woman, Maria Vittoria, who is from the mountains of Italy. The story paints a rich and vivid picture of Italian culture and the unstable economy and political climate during those years.

Readers follow Maria as she marries, moves away and runs a market with her husband, Achille. They start a family and do fairly well until World War II. They endure difficult times during the war years, but this is not a story about labor camps or exterminations.

This is the story a marriage, of how to endure and how to forgive. I really enjoyed reading this and the look into Italian life during that time was so authentic that I could easily picture it in my mind.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the opportunity to read an advance copy and give my honest review. ( )