Di Giacomo G., SURVIVAL World War II North of Cassino Through the Eyes of a Ten-
Year-Old, and His Immigration to the United States, p.360 , Author House 
Publishing Co., 2005. ( Preview published in the Sunday 
Poughkeepsie Journal, Oct.16, 2005). 

Published a non-fiction book entitled “SURVIVAL, WWII and the Aftermath North of 
Cassino through the Eyes of a Ten- Year-Old, and His Immigration to the United 
States.” The book recounts with details and realism the suffering of an entire 
village population north of Cassino during the frigid months of 1943-1944, 
forced by the Germans to evacuate with their children and aging parents, without 
much food and clothing, likely to die by a bullet, starvation, or freezing in a 
mountainside. It is a true story of tragic events afflicting innocent people, 
living in caves and huts pervious to rain and hardly protective against the 
bitter winter, and also a historical and human account that reveals the true 
nature and instinct of people while risking their lives for survival every day. 
It exposes the unsung courage and tragedy of civilians in a ravaging war as 
lived by a ten-year-old for nine months.

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“SURVIVAL” BOOK PREVIEW

POUKEEPSIE JOURNAL
Sunday, October 16, 2005
LOCAL AUTHORS

'Survival' recounts boy's hardships

"Survival: World War II and the Aftermath North of Cassino Through the Eyes of a 
Ten-Year-Old, and His Immigration to the United States," by Giulio DiGiacomo; 
AuthorHouse (360 pages, $22.95)

Giulio DiGiacomo of Hopewell Junction was 10 years old in November 1943. His 
hometown, Cansano, Italy, was pillaged by German troops and DiGiacomo and his 
family were forced to evacuate into the mountains. With little food and water to 
sustain them through the winter, the villagers were forced to steal sheep from 
the Nazis to survive. For six weeks, DiGiacomo and his family lived in the 
ountains until a blizzard forced them into the village — the village occupied by 
the Nazis.

D-Day would bring freedom from the occupation and the opportunity for a new life 
in the United States.

— Orlando R. Lorenzo, staff writer