This is the transcription and translation of a real diary written in 1943 by Oreste Maina during WWII, when he was torn from his family and small town in southern Italy and taken to Germany as a deportee along with many other Italians. This chapter of WWII’s history remains relatively unknown: it is estimated that over 500,000 Italian men were deported to Germany for forced labor after September 8th 1943. Some made it back, some did not. This diary recounts the day-to-day experience, the hopes and fears of one deportee: my grandfather.
This online project builds a bridge between the modern-day concept of blogging and the original diary written by my grandfather. Beginning on September 23rd 2008, the entries from his diary were published on this blog on the exact day they were written many years ago.
In loving memory of Oreste Maina. September 6, 1908 – June 28, 2001
