The Hero's Way: Walking with Garibaldi from Rome to Ravenna

Tim Parks

Jul 2021 · Highbridge Audio · Narrated by Roger May

About this audiobook

In the summer of 1849, Giuseppe Garibaldi, Italy's legendary revolutionary, was finally forced to abandon his defense of Rome. He and his men had held the besieged city for four long months, but now it was clear that only surrender would prevent slaughter and destruction at the hands of a huge French army. Against all odds, Garibaldi was determined to turn defeat into moral victory. On the evening of July 2, riding alongside his pregnant wife, Anita, he led 4,000 hastily assembled men to continue the struggle for national independence elsewhere. Hounded by both French and Austrian armies, the garibaldini marched hundreds of miles across the Appenines, Italy's mountainous spine, and after two months of skirmishes and adventures arrived in Ravenna with just 250 survivors. Bestselling author Tim Parks, together with his partner Eleonora, set out in the blazing summer of 2019 to follow Garibaldi and Anita's arduous journey through the heart of Italy. In The Hero's Way he delivers a superb travelogue that captures Garibaldi's determination, creativity, reckless courage, and profound belief. And he provides a fascinating portrait of Italy then and now, filled with unforgettable observations of Italian life and landscape, politics, and people.

About the author

Tim Parks has been shortlisted for the Booker Prize, and has won the Somerset Maugham Award, the Betty Trask Prize, the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize, the John Florio Prize, and the Calvino Prize. His acclaimed books about Italy include Italian Ways, A Season with Verona, Italian Neighbors, and An Italian Education.