Beneath A Scarlet Sky by Mark Sullivan

 I went in search of this book when I saw it was on the list for this month's Stonebridge neighbors book club. I've been invited multiple times but haven't made it yet, but will this time. I was able to check this book out of the Santa Clara library, and I read it in just a few days. It was a good read, not especially well-written, but it's a compelling story, based on a real person.

Pino Lella is the main character, and my favorite part of the book was near the beginning when he lived in a boys' school, high up in the Alps, near the Swiss border. He was sent there from his family in Milan for safety as the Nazi's were rampant in Italy. His faith and strength under difficult circumstances leading Jews over icy mountains was inspiring to me! I loved that part, and Pino was at his most faithful and blessed.

The rest of the book is filled with pain and violence, and the other main character is the German general that Pino is the driver for. He has lots of conflicting feelings about General Leyers and it's hard to watch the continuing atrocities unfold. I didn't know about all of the horrors happening in Italy, so it was new to me. I liked the Milanese family characters that surround Pino, and Father Re, the priest in the Alps whom he respects so much.

I found the ending and afterword very interesting as the author explains the unfolding of how he researched the story after meeting Pino in his later years. General Leyers was a real person also, as were most of the others. I liked learning about all of this, and particularly learning about Mussolini and his death.  Pino's love interest was well described, as when he found it hard to concentrate on his orders when he was day dreaming about her. He must have had a great memory for details or else the author made up a lot of details that helped me understand the milieu and gave me a real desire to visit Italy. 

Overall an interesting read, but not one I would want to read again. Too violent...and dark, despite Pino's and his family's goodness. It will be interesting to hear what these new book club ladies will hve to say...