Lecture in English by Benedetta Origo and Katia Lysy

The occasion for this talk is the publication of A Chill in the Air: An Italian War Diary 1939-1940, precursor to her best-selling War in Val d’Orcia: An Italian War Diary (1943-1944). Biograher and historian (her best-known books include Leopardi. A Study in Solitude, The Last Attachment and The Merchant of Prato), Iris Origo lived in Florence and Val d’Orcia, where she devoted  much of her life to improving the vast estate of La Foce, which she bought with her husband Antonio in the 1920s. During the Second World War La Foce  sheltered refugee children, partisans and escaped Allied prisoners of war. Benedetta Origo and Katia Lysy, respectively daughter and granddaughter of Iris Origo, provide a compelling personal account of her life and works.

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