Kristy Miller's Reviews > A Thread of Grace

The beauty and emotional complexity of this book never fail to astound me. It doesn't matter how many times I read it.
*July 17, 2018*
Years ago, when I was still working at Borders, I came across a paperback book on the front tables as I was straightening up. The cover caught my eye, and I picked it up to read the back. It was set in northern Italy, towards the end of World War II, and I decided to make it my book of the week. At that point Italy was my favorite country that I’d visited, and I have been obsessed with World War II stories since I was a girl. That book, Thread of Grace, was to become my favorite book, and Mary Doria Russell became my favorite author.

The book follows the story of several characters, starting on the day Italy surrendered. Having always been welcoming of others, and not really caring about religion, Italy was flooded by refugees, but it is now a country occupied by the Germans. We meet Claudia and her father, who climb the alps from France with the aid of an Italian soldier, and seek shelter with a poor mountain family. We follow Renzo, a Jew and former bomber pilot, as he, his mother, and his rabbi neighbor and family deal with the German’s new interest in Italian Jews. Mixed in with these main characters are others in the community; Duno, a young Polish refugee who is tired of running; Don Osvaldo and Don Leto, local priests; Werner Schram, a German doctor who has abandoned his post; and German officers and SS leaders trying to deal with now uncooperative Italian people. Together, these characters weave a tapestry of love, resilience, heartbreak, and the horrors of war.
Mary Doria Russell’s two greatest strengths in writing are her research and her characters. She spends years doing meticulous research as she writes her books. This makes the wait between them seem unending, but the result is worth it. Her stories are rich in detail and scope, and make you feel like you are completely immersed in the story that her characters are living. The characters she writes are as rich as the landscape they fill. You feel like they are sitting across the table, and telling you their story on their own. They have personality, history, depth, and heart.

I can’t tell you how many times I have read and listened to Thread of Grace. It still moves me, and brings me to tears. It is probably not her best book; that would be The Sparrow, which I also recommend. But it is my favorite of her books, by far.