Andrea Molesini’s new novel is a story of family, war, and love—a sweeping, unstoppable narrative told to his son by a man nearing the end of his life who fought in World War II and lived through the entire century.

Crucial moments in Italian history are retraced, intertwining with the life of the author’s father, Aurelio, born in 1907. His relationship with his son was never easy, marked by many silences and unspoken words. Babbo Rolli, as Andrea always called him, lets his memories flow just as, ill—we are in the 1970s—he feels the end approaching. Freedom and courage are the guiding threads of his life; he tells his son of the sea and of war, but above all of the twenty months of the Nazi occupation, from September ’43 to May ’45. In the aftermath of September 8, Aurelio, a naval engineer at the Genoa shipyards, flees toward Venice, taking with him the blueprints for the new hull he is designing. Along the way, he encounters Germans, disbanded Italians, women, partisans, and members of the Republic of Venice. 

Upon arriving in the Lagoon, he is contacted by the partisans and hands over to them the blueprints for the ship L’Aquila. The narration of past events—exciting, at times agitated, intense—alternates with his son’s visits to the hospital, the nuns, the nurses, and the doctor treating him; under the bed lies a suitcase full of old clippings to support the account of these events. As the pages turn, we learn many things about Babbo Rolli’s life and also about Andrea’s, especially his passion for literature. As they share their memories, the two gradually grow closer, while the story reaches its conclusion alongside Rolli’s life. The writing is always the standout feature of Molesini’s novels—powerful, musical, poetic—adhering to realistic detail without sacrificing the force of metaphor.