Saturday, February 6, 2016

Biblioteca Partigiana II (Partisan Bookshelf 2)

Months have passed since my last post. Partially to blame is my distractibility. But it's also an issue of it becoming more difficult to find new things about which to write. That's not to say that I have plumbed the depths of research and have at last come up empty; oh, far from it!

Gli Americani e la Guerra di Liberazione in Italia (The Americans and the War of Liberation in Italy)
This esoteric volume contains the proceedings of a conference held in Italy in 1994 on the American interaction with the partisans. Each conference presentation is included in both Italian and English; a fact that I realized only after having read about half way through the Italian language section).

Much of the content discusses the various OSS (Office of Strategic Services) "Missions" and their roles in several operations, principally in northern Italy after the liberation of Rome. While possibly of interest to the hard-core WWII historian, this small (and often expensive) volume contains little of practical use for the typical partisan reenactor.

World War II Partisan Warfare in Italy
On the other hand, this Osprey 'Elite' series publication should prove quite useful to the aspiring partisan reenactor. Chapters in the book include:
- From early resistance to partisan warfare
- Partisan warfare
- Insurgency: Summer 1944
- Crisis: Autumn-Winter 1944
- Recovery: Spring 1945
- Summary:
  - The partisans
  - The German reaction

Authors Pier Paolo Battistelli and Piero Crociani present a thoughtful and balanced account of the partisan experience and that of their foes in the struggle to liberate the country. Fifteen color illustrations of selected combatants as well as many period photographs are sprinkled throughout the book. All in all, if you buy but one book to guide you in creating a good partisan impression, let this be it!