Posted in
|
Kirsten Mckenzie
|
|
||
|
Genre
|
|||
|
Media
|
Book
|
||
Publisher | John Murray | ||
ISBN | 978-184854150 | ||
|
Reviewer
|
Wendy
|
Synopsis
Emilio and Rosa are childhood sweethearts, engaged to be married. But it is 1942 and the war has taken Emilio far from Italy, to a tiny Orkney island where he is a POW. Rosa must wait for him to return and help her mother run the family hotel on the shores of Lake Como, in Italy. Feeling increasingly frustrated with his situation, Emilio is inspired by the idea of building a chapel on the barren island. The prisoners band together to create an extraordinary building out of little more than salvaged odds and ends and homemade paints. Whilst Emilio's chapel will remain long after the POW camp has been left to the sheep, will his love for Rosa survive the hardships of war and separation? For Rosa is no longer the girl that he left behind. She is being drawn further into the Italian resistance movement and closer to danger, as friendships and allegiances are ever complicated by the war. Human perseverance and resilience are at the heart of this strong debut and the small Italian chapel remains, as it does in reality on the island of Lamb's Holm, as a symbol of these qualities.
Review
An enthralling book about the Italian P.O.W.S.who converted two huts into a chapel at Lamb Holm in the Orkneys.Kirtsen Mckenzie gives us an insight into what life was like for the Italians, who lived there under very difficult circumstances with the extreme cold and gruelling hard work yet they found the time and the energy to convert and decorate this chapel.I believe that these men were on a spritual journey becouse this project gave them hope that things could only get better. This Chapel is a symbol of what can be achieved in adversity. I hope when people visit the chapel at Lamb Holm they will spare a thought for the men who made it possible.
If you enjoy what we provide, please consider making a donation.
