A novel to cherish

• Book: Watching Over Her
• Location: Italy
• Author: Frank Wynne (Translator), Jean-Baptiste Andrea

Review Author: Tina Hartas

This novel comes with all kinds of accolades: “The international bestseller that has captivated Europe“…

This is a charmingly told story of a Mimo Vitaliani, a celebrated and talented sculptor, who is lying on his deathbed. He reflects on his life and looks back at the trajectory of events, both personal and international and throughout is his  friend Viola. Having had an unpromising start to life – compounded by the fact the artists is short (a ‘dwarf’) – he asserts he was “a bona fide Italian, shaped by drought, deprivation and getting by.” even though his early roots were in France. He learns to stride (and he really does!) through the world of sculpting whilst Viola is in search of an education, denied to the women in her family, even though she had aristocratic blood flowing through her veins. They go on to travel through life, side by side, he becomes famous and she is forced into marriage but maintains some of her delightfully quirky characteristics.

The odd couple, that’s for sure but they are both inimitable characters drawn to each other as they explore and grow into their adult selves. They bond over the gravestones in Pietra d’Alba (the name of the fictional place where they live, perhaps a play on Alba Pietra which is a dolomitic marble known for its hardness and white background with subtle grey veining), adding an otherworldly element to the bond that binds them.

This story is linearly told, as the backdrop of history in Italy unfolds during the 20th Century – from ‘the goon from Milan” finding himself at the head of government, through WW2 and the flooding of the Arno in 1966.

The character of Mimo is beautifully drawn, an engaging character who can be irascible yet discerning, with a sage sense of humour despite some of his encounters. There are wonderful words of wisdom – when he is continues to take commissions from people who are indubitably fascist, he is warned: “I will simply tell you that the day may come when your conscience is worth more than your wristwatch”

This is as good a novel as you will find, up there with the top reads!

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