Between July 1942 and October 1943, a group of seventy-three young Jewish refugees from Germany, Austria and Yugoslavia, bound for Palestine, were housed in Nonantola, a small town in the province of Modena, at Villa Emma. Accompanying them were several adult guides, including Josef Indig. The fact itself is well known. The new development came with the discovery, in 2002, of two crates of books – ninety-four volumes in total – published in the early decades of the twentieth century and bearing the stamp of the Delegation for the Assistance of Emigrants (Delasem). This, together with other evidence, places those books within what was a sort of minimal library which, in the intentions of the organisers of that escape, was meant to accompany the group of refugees, a collection that was, in fact, intended to comprise more than eight hundred volumes. Books on the Run. Reading and studying whilst the world burns. Europe, Italy 1939-1945, edited by Chiara Conterno and Elena Pirazzoli (Bologna, Il Mulino, 2024), is a collection of essays that bear witness to the directions research has taken, following various paths, starting from that discovery.
Tra il luglio 1942 e l’ottobre 1943 un gruppo di settantatré giovani profughi ebrei provenienti da Germania, Austria, Jugoslavia e destinati ad approdare in Palestina furono ospitati a Nonantola, piccolo comune della provincia di Modena, presso Villa Emma. Con loro, alcune guide adulte, tra le quali Josef Indig. Il fatto in sé è noto. La novità interviene con il ritrovamento, nel 2002, di due casse di libri, novantaquattro volumi in totale, editi nei primi decenni del Novecento e recanti il timbro della Delegazione per l’assistenza degli emigranti (Delasem). Questo, assieme ad altri elementi, colloca quei libri in quella che fu una sorta di biblioteca minima che nelle intenzioni degli organizzatori di quella fuga doveva accompagnare il gruppo di profughi, fondo che doveva essere costituito, invece, di più di ottocento volumi. Libri in fuga. Leggere e studiare mentre il mondo brucia. Europa, Italia 1939-1945, a cura di Chiara Conterno e Elena Pirazzoli (Bologna, Il Mulino, 2024), è una raccolta di saggi che testimoniano degli indirizzi che la ricerca ha preso, seguendo varie direttrici, partendo da quel ritrovamento.
Trombone, A. (2025). Libri in fuga. Leggere e studiare mentre il mondo brucia. Europa, Italia 1939-1945, a cura di Chiara Conterno, Elena Pirazzoli, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2024. Bibliothecae.It, 14(2), 398–411. https://doi.org/10.60923/issn.2283-9364/23539
Antonella Trombone
2025-01-01
Abstract
Between July 1942 and October 1943, a group of seventy-three young Jewish refugees from Germany, Austria and Yugoslavia, bound for Palestine, were housed in Nonantola, a small town in the province of Modena, at Villa Emma. Accompanying them were several adult guides, including Josef Indig. The fact itself is well known. The new development came with the discovery, in 2002, of two crates of books – ninety-four volumes in total – published in the early decades of the twentieth century and bearing the stamp of the Delegation for the Assistance of Emigrants (Delasem). This, together with other evidence, places those books within what was a sort of minimal library which, in the intentions of the organisers of that escape, was meant to accompany the group of refugees, a collection that was, in fact, intended to comprise more than eight hundred volumes. Books on the Run. Reading and studying whilst the world burns. Europe, Italy 1939-1945, edited by Chiara Conterno and Elena Pirazzoli (Bologna, Il Mulino, 2024), is a collection of essays that bear witness to the directions research has taken, following various paths, starting from that discovery.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
