The Italian Proust
Sir: I was delighted to read the wonderful article by Nicholas Farrell (`Sabres for Savoy', 31 October) which paid tribute to the brave men of the Savoy cavalry regi- ment who took part in the last successful cavalry charge in history, at Isbushenski in the sunflower fields by the river Don in Russia, on 24 August 1942.
In his article, Mr Farrell also refers to my father Andrea Giovene's monumental novel, Sansevero, now translated from Ital- ian into English and published by Quartet Encounters in two paperback volumes.
He, too, was a cavalry captain in the Lanciere Aosta regiment and was stationed in Greece where, when the Republic of Salo was formed following the armistice, he refused to serve under the command of the Germans, was taken prisoner, forced into hard labour and witnessed the destruction of the Reich and the fall of Berlin.
Mr Farrell is not alone in lamenting the sad fact that Sansevero, 'this majestic Italian alternative to Proust', is curiously neglected in Britain. It is described by Professor Elio Gioanola of the University of Genova, the leading literary critic in Italy, as 'the most important work of literature to come out of Neapolitan culture this century'. With translations worldwide and the Golden Eagle of Nice award from the French Academy, it ought to be more widely read. Laurence Giovene
44 Onslow Gardens, London SW7
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