The Children's Train
A Novel
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4.1 • 9 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
The inspiration behind the forthcoming Netflix film
“The innocence of childhood collides with the stark aftermath of war in this wrenching and ultimately redemptive tale of family, seemingly impossible choices, and the winding paths to destiny, which sometimes take us to places far beyond our imaginings.” – Lisa Wingate, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author of Before We Were Yours and The Book of Lost Friends
"Ardone’s beautifully crafted story explores the meaning of identity and belonging...recommended to fans of Elena Ferrante’s Neapolitan novels." – The Library Journal
“[The Children’s Train] leaves you with a great sense of the importance of family and the tough decisions that must be faced as a result of that love.” – Shelf Awareness
Based on true events, a heartbreaking story of love, family, hope, and survival set in post-World War II Italy—written with the heart of Orphan Train and Before We Were Yours—about poor children from the south sent to live with families in the north to survive deprivation and the harsh winters.
Though Mussolini and the fascists have been defeated, the war has devastated Italy, especially the south. Seven-year-old Amerigo lives with his mother Antonietta in Naples, surviving on odd jobs and his wits like the rest of the poor in his neighborhood. But one day, Amerigo learns that a train will take him away from the rubble-strewn streets of the city to spend the winter with a family in the north, where he will be safe and have warm clothes and food to eat.
Together with thousands of other southern children, Amerigo will cross the entire peninsula to a new life. Through his curious, innocent eyes, we see a nation rising from the ashes of war, reborn. As he comes to enjoy his new surroundings and the possibilities for a better future, Amerigo will make the heartbreaking choice to leave his mother and become a member of his adoptive family.
Amerigo’s journey is a moving story of memory, indelible bonds, artistry, and self-exploration, and a soaring examination of what family can truly mean. Ultimately Amerigo comes to understand that sometimes we must give up everything, even a mother's love, to find our destiny.
Translated from the Italian by Clarissa Botsford
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Ardone takes a moving look at the experiences of a seven-year-old child in post-WWII Italy in her tender English-language debut. In 1946, Amerigo Speranza is one of a group of children sent by train from Naples to Northern Italy to spend time with an affluent family as part of a Communist Party initiative to provide a break from poverty. Despite their anxieties, the kids remain capable of selflessness, giving up their winter coats for the family they leave behind, making the departure scene a searing one. When Amerigo arrives in Modena, he ends up with Derna, a woman who has no affinity for children; nonetheless, they eventually bond, and Amerigo's interest in music is nurtured by Derna's piano tuner cousin-in-law, leading to unexpected complications when he's reunited with his mother six months later. The overall tone is somber, as the book is told from Amerigo's perspective looking back on his life, but Ardone does introduce some lighter moments, as when one of Amerigo's fellow refugee children is asked if he'd ever seen an earthenware pignatta down south. His reply: "We had the sticks but not the pots." With a mix of stark realism and wistful reflection, Ardone succeeds in portraying the challenges of growing up under trying circumstances.
