Product Description

Norman Lewis arrived in Naples as an Intelligence Officer attached to the American Fifth Army. By 1944 the city’s inhabitants were so destitute that all the tropical fish in the aquarium had been devoured, and numbers of respectable women had been driven to prostitution. The mafia gradually became so indispensable to the occupying forces that it succeeded in regaining its former power.
Lewis finds little to admire in his fellow soldiers, but gains sustenance from the extraordinary vivacity of the Italians. There is the lawyer who earns his living bringing a touch of Roman class to funerals, the gynaecologist who 'specialises in the restoration of lost virginity' and the widowed housewife who times her english lover against the clock. Despite the cruelty and suffering he encountered, Norman Lewis writes in the diary, ‘A year among Italians has converted me to such an admiration for their humanity and culture that were I given the chance to be born again, Italy would be the country of my choice’.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7435 in Books
• Published on: 2002-07-31
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 192 pages

Review
We oldies who remember the war in Italy know that Naples '44 is the real thing, pure gold. It has all the qualifications to become a classic: the ring of truth, superb writing and the magical lure of a book you cannot put down. --Martha Gelhorn, Daily Mail

Naples '44 is quite simply one of the great books to emerge from WW2. --Time Out

Richard West, The Spectator
A wonderful book

Graham Greene
As unique an experience for the reader as it must have been a unique experience for the writer

Customer Reviews

Well written, atmospheric, rivetting and rings true.
I was hooked from page 1. This diary of a British Field Security sergeant in recently liberated Naples rings true in every respect. It is especially good in the way it tells how the chaotic situation among the Allies allowed the Mafia to reassert its influence. Of course, it was the poor liberated Italians who suffered most. Any person who has been in the Forces will recognize the truth of Lewis' stories of the complex relationships between the transient troops and their reluctant hosts. I had not enjoyed a book so much for a long time and have recommended it to friends.

Effortless prose depicts an incredible culture and period
Naples '44 is simply an incredible, brilliantly-written diary of an intelligence officer that is at times shocking and moving.

Armed with modesty, unfailing politness and, perhaps most impressively, a military pass allowing him to be anywhere at any time and in any uniform, Norman Lewis moves through the murky, dangerous world of wartime Naples.

Lewis, who died in July 2003, was a London-born Welshmen whose diamond-sharp eye for observation and subtle satire and humour depicts with warmth and accuracy the idiosyncrasies of Italian culture, and a city that has descended into chaos.

For Lewis, his stay in Naples was an unforgettable experience. Thanks to his writing talent it is also an unforgettable experience for any reader of Naples '44 - a fascinating and valuable historical document.

An enthralling account of a desperate time
Norman Lewis is, to my mind, one of the least appreciated authors and travel writers of this century. His books of his travels around SE Asia in the fifties are classics though have failed to achieve the widespread success that I feel they deserve. This book is a fabulously interesting account of his time in Naples after the liberation of the city by the Allies in 1944. This book left me with a profound sadness at the futility of war but strangely reassured by the inherent goodness of people despite incredibly bleak and desperate circumstances. This book provides a fascinating insight into the little described life of the rear echelons during the last world war.