A Bell for Adano
by John Hersey
A Bell for Adano
John Hersey |
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 155)
Read in January, 2008
A fantastic book and a great read; that may seem like a “well duh!” statement since this book won the Pulitzer Prize but that was in 1945 and times and taste do change. However, this book really does stand the test of time. To sum up, the story revolves around Italian-American US Army Major Victor Joppolo. Joppolo, or “Mister Major,” is placed in charge of the town of Adano during the invasion of Italy and throughout his tenure attempts to win the hearts and trust of the people; not t...more
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A Bell for Adano is a surprisingly pleasant little book that paints a positive message about America’s occupation of a small town in Italy during the Second World War. This is in a stark contrast to another book I read recently, Slaughterhouse about the Allied forces fire bombing of a German town. A Bell for Adano’s main character is an Italian American Major in the U.S. Army who is the acting mayor of the occupied town in Italy. He does everything in his power to bring happiness to the p...more
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Read in January, 2005
This is such a beautifully themed book. It takes place in Italy and is about an American soldier and his experiences in a small town called Adano. If I remember rightly, it takes place during WWII. I bought this book because I liked it so much. I didn't think I'd really like it so much because of the setting (I'm not really a war-book fan) but it was recommended to me and I just loved it. This is a distinctly male read. I'd recommend it to any guy (and have) and have yet to have someone rea...more
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Read in September, 2006
recommends it for:
those who need cheering up.
A war book that is not a war book, this book is surprisingly sweet! I fell in love with the Sergeant. I suppose Hersey is the ant-vonnegut, because he's so optimistic, sometimes he's a bit cock-eyed. And I couldn't shake the fact that he portrayed the Italian locals as being slightly ignorant--at the same time I found this novel to be quite affecting.
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Read in December, 2008
I could almost give this book 5 stars...I probably should since it's a Pulitzer Prize winning novel. However, a few of the Sicilian characters seemed a bit cliche. I tried to think what my Italian friend would have to say about them. Other than that, this is a wonderful novel!
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Really good. Takes place during World War II (I think) in Italy, but not about the fighting per se. Took awhile to get going, but I really liked how it led into the ending.
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Italy in world war II with the Italians hoodwinking the Germans to save their grape harvest to make vino. More light hearted than most of Hersey's writing.
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Read in January, 2003
Fictional story of a bumbling Italian-American army major in post World War II Italy - written with beautifully caring humor.
(won a Pulitzer)
(won a Pulitzer)
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Read in February, 2008
DIFFERENT BOOK THAN I'M USED TO BUT VERY GOOD NONETHELESS....I LOVED THE TOWN NAME OF VICINAMARE AS MY MAIDEN NAME IS VICINANZA....HA!
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recommends it for:
History and literature buffs.
I'm sure Hersey was preoccupied with war, but the hopefulness of this book is touching.
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Read in October, 2005
I was so disappointed to realize Joppolo was fictitious ...
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Read in March, 2008
Won the Pulitzer in 1945.
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