Why read Captain Corelli's Mandolin?

Book cover of Captain Corelli's Mandolin

Book description

25TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION - WITH A NEW INTRODUCTION BY THE AUTHOR

'A true diamond of a novel, glinting with comedy and tragedy' Daily Mail

It is 1941 and Captain Antonio Corelli, a young Italian officer, is posted to the Greek island of Cephallonia as part of the occupying forces. At…

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Why read it?

2 authors picked Captain Corelli's Mandolin as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Andrew R. Novo

Author

Set on the island of Cephalonia during Italy’s occupation of Greece, Captain Corelli’s Mandolin explores the relationship between occupier and occupied and the enduring strength of the human spirit.

When Italy surrenders to the Allies, the Germans occupy the island, and the Italian forces must choose to fight or to resist. In the middle of these grand politics, an Italian captain, Corelli, has fallen in love with a Greek woman, Pelagia, the daughter of the local town doctor.

At its heart, the book is about the fundamental humanity of love and its power to transform people for good or ill.…

From Andrew's list on The best fictionalized accounts of resistance and occupation in World War II.

Anastasia Miari

Author

This is a book that still makes me sob, even on the third, fourth, and fifth read.

Louis de Bernieres’ love story set during the second world war on the island of Kefalonia is more than just another beach read. It chronicles the tragedy of the events of the second world war, holding a microscope over the island of Kefalonia and homing in on an imagined love story between Pelagia, a local girl, and Captain Corelli, an Italian soldier stationed on the island as part of the Italian occupation of Greece.

Yes, this is a piece of fiction but I…

From Anastasia's list on The best books to odyssey across Greece with.