Title- Beneath a Scarlet Sky
Author- Mark Sullivan
Publisher- Lake Union Publishing
Format- Kindle Edition
Pages- 516
Review- 4.5/5
Summary- Pino Lella, a seventeen year old Italian boy was living a carefree life, untouched by the Great War, until Allied bombings started in Milan and he had a near death experience when he went to watch a movie with his brother Mimo. When their family home was damaged by a bomb, in order to keep him safe, his father sent him to Casa Alpina, a boarding school in the Alps where under the guidance of Father Re, he helped many Jews to escape the Nazis and cross the border to Switzerland. However things took a different turn when he was called back to Milan by his father and was made to enrol in the German Army. One day, by the stroke of luck he was recruited by a high ranking German officer, General Leyers, as his driver, which gave him the opportunity to start working as a spy for the Allied Forces.
Review- This is truly a captivating tale of the Second World War. Right at the beginning of the book the author has mentioned that it is a true story which made my reading journey even more enthralling. It is quite astonishing how a young person like Pino could take such life threatening risks just to save his motherland from the grip of the Nazis. Starting from looting of harvests to killing of innocent people, the atrocities caused by the Nazis were really heartbreaking. Amidst such cruelties of war, the author's description of the life at Casa Alpina provided a soothing effect.
Pino Lella is a perfect example of a hero in my opinion. From helping the Jews in escaping via the Alps while staying at Casa Alpina, to collecting important information while working for General Leyers to break the backbone of the Germans, he had done everything he could to serve his country. His life as a spy was not an easy job and for his swastika uniform he was often rebuked by people around him including his best friend Carletto and his own brother Mimo. His uncle, Albert, was the one who gave him the idea of becoming a spy and assisted him to pass the information he collected to the Allied Forces. People like Father Re and Cardinal Schuster helped people to restore their faith in humanity during difficult times. On the other hand, General Leyers was a person who could do anything for his own benefit. He did not care whether it was inhumane or not until it worked in his own favour.
The description of the route while Pino was helping the Jews to escape is both confusing and tiring to read and could have been presented in a better way.
If not for the author, the story of Pino Lella would have remained buried forever, unknown to many. It was him who had met Pino personally and gave his story a new life. I would highly recommend this book to all readers.
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