A Thread of Grace (2005)

This is an amazing novel, and I highly recommend it. It’s a great read. I’ve admired Russell’s sci-fi work; she’s a pithy, clear, strong writer.

This historical novel is set in the Italian countryside in the waning years of World War 2. Italy has surrendered, and thousands of Jews cross the Alps hoping to find safety there, only to find the Germans have moved in to occupy the country. However, the social ties between Catholics and Jews are strong in Italy, and so Hitler’s persecution of the Jews doesn’t carry much weight there. People from all walks of life come together to hide the emigrants from the Nazis, and to build a strong resistance to the German occupation.

The novel is a dense read, with a complex set of characters. But all of them are very real, and it’s worth keeping track of them. I was gripped, and also educated, as I didn’t know much about the partisans in Italy.
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recommended for: those who enjoy fine novels, historical fiction novels, World War II history

For once I was able to thoroughly enjoy a historical fiction book without wondering what was real and what was fiction.

This is a character driven story and everyone in the book seemed genuine. I especially enjoyed the poignant sensibilities of the children and adolescents.

I’m a sucker for maps and this book had a map of real places and one of fictional places that were within the real map’s area. There was also a handy characters list at the front of the book. I found myself referring to both of these frequently and found the character list indispensable, especially because a few of the characters went by more than one name.

It was so refreshing to see a book about World War II that’s about Nazi occupied Europe (in this case Northern Italy) where the populace helped Jewish citizens and refugees and partisians too, and where Jewish people often helped themselves and also often contributed significantly to the fight against the German occupiers. (At times it reminded me of another great Holocaust era novel: The Book Thief, which shows ordinary German citizens who help a Jewish man/Jewish people in Germany during the same Nazi era.)

There was actually much humor.

The book had a compelling message about what trauma can do to people and also made me think (more) about elderly people and what they might have been like when they were younger. I also thought the portrayals of the people's motivations and changes they experienced seemed very authentic.

I loved the meaning of the title A Thread of Grace.

I did think this was a fine novel and I appreciated the research that went into writing it.

What I didn’t like a lot but was okay:

I knew a bit more about this book than I would have liked before I read it, so I won’t say a lot, but I will say that it’s a book about a brutal war so the reader can expect a lot of carnage.

There are so many characters and there were a lot of times where I grew very attached to a character and then they didn’t appear again for many, many pages; there are a lot of subplots; in this book I guess the plot is a bunch of subplots as no single one really stood out for me.

What I didn’t like:

No, Hitler was not a vegetarian. I didn’t like that this book perpetuated that myth.

and:

Because of this book, I'd like to read more history about this area of Northern Italy during World War II. I'd also love to visit the area, even though I'd enjoy the cuisine of Southern Italy much more. It will have to be armchair traveling for me. ( )

Haunting tale of Jews & Catholics during the last years of WWII. Set mostly in Italy, with a cast of entirely believable characters, this book kept me up nights- at first reading, and then thinking. Excellent writing that made WWII alive for me in a way nothing I've read before has done. ( )

Great read about how World War II affected Italy. It seems very authentic and true to the culture and the time period. Ms. Russell is a wonderful writer of historical fiction. I have enjoyed everything I have read by her. ( )

Mary Doria Russell has enchanted me with several of her books. When I started this, I was hoping to be enchanted. I actually put it aside for a bit, because it wasn't hitting the mark for me. But then, a few days later, the characters kept calling me, so I picked it up again, and was swept into a view of WWII of which I was embarrassingly ignorant. This was a beautifully written story of the plight of those Jews in Italy, either by birth or immigration/escape, and of the patriots who fought against the Nazis. Stories of love, hope , separation, horror, redemption, loss, all interwoven. This book taught me as well as captured me. Not an easy read, but an enlightening one. ( )