What a beautifully written book! I wept; I laughed out loud; I was furious; I was anxious and worried; I gasped in horror; I smiled secret smiles; I rejoiced; I LOVED. All the characters, even the minor ones, come to life. I did think a few chapters could have been edited, as they didn't serve the plot (but DID provide background history of WW II), and I found the ending unsatisfactory. But still, after borrowing it from the library I RAN out and bought it - High praise indeed.

I read it first in March 2001, and then recommended it to one of my book clubs and re-read it in Oct 2001.

BTW - The movie was absolutely horrible. Forget the movie! READ the book!

It took me quite awhile to finish this unusual novel, not because it failed to hold my interest, but because it felt so strange to be reading a story about an old catastrophe while living through brand new interesting times...the daily news has been most distracting.

Corelli's Mandolin is a WWII novel set on the Greek island of Cephallonia, during the Italian occupation. Louis de Bernieres weaves history and local folklore together in this touching story that centers around Pelagia, a young Greek woman who falls in love with Captain Corelli, a member of the occupying army.

Though these two characters are the novel's focus, there are many other engaging, charming, and tragic characters, and I cared about all of them. I'm always impressed when an author makes me feel compassion for characters who turn bad, and de Bernieres achieved that at least once in this story.

Pelagia's father, Dr. Iannis, is a fascinating character, and the wisdom he passes on to his daughter are among the most profound words I've ever read in a novel.

The ending was not what I expected, and did not seem realistic, but then, it's not supposed to be. I interpret it as statement about what was taken from people who didn't get to live the lives they should have had. I loved the way Pelagia gets to reminiscence at the end, remembering Carlos, Velisarios, Lemoni, Psipsini, and Drosoula...because as her father once said, when loved ones die, you have to live on their behalf...

Bravo! Thank you, Kevin, for the recommendation.

I've read several books by Bernieres and Corelli's Mandolin is one my favorites. The author has one of those bizarre scattered minds that makes following his plots entertaining. You never know what is going to happen next. Bernieres's also written a crazy book that takes place in the Andes where this tribe takes peyote or some such drug and they start wandering all over the moutains and have wild dreams.

The book begins with a parody of Mussolini that made me laugh out loud. The rest of the book follows Italian soldiers occupying a small Greek island during WWII. The soldiers bond with their fellow Germans until Mussolini switches sides and suddenly they've got to put down their wine and bruscetta to have a quick battle. In between there is a great love story between Captain Corelli and the female protagonist that is slated to marry and illiterate fisherman.

I went to the opening night of the movie and it was so terrible I nearly cried.

n  “We should care for each other more than we care for ideas, or else we will end up killing each other.”n
― Louis de Bernières, Corelli's Mandolin

The sheer beauty and emotion that coats the pages of this book are breathtaking. I laughed, I cried, I fell in love, and my heart was broken. Eavesdropping on the horror of war, I found heroes in the unlikeliest places and, at the end, I wanted to hurl the book across the room!

To evoke such passion is the true sign of a great writer.

The setting is the Greek island of Cephalonia, and life is relaxed. As I became invested, the monster of WWII rips its way through the lives of our new-found friends. I felt the horror of war, the strength of those left at home and the bravery of men on the front line. Even in the despair of battle, love and compassion can be found.

The plot followed several key players as their lives unfold and, at the risk of giving too much away, I will merely urge you to read Captain Corelli’s Mandolin.

This absorbing novel blurs the lines between comedy and tragedy. The writing is poetic; the story, epic.

Read as part of The Infinite Variety Reading Challenge, based on the BBC's Big Read Poll of 2003.

I've had this book for years after accidentally stealing it from College (we were asked to pick two books on a table to take home over the Summer to read and I chose this and Catch-22, but when I returned the following term I was in a different class and simply forgot, about half a dozen times, to return them and subsequently have had it since) and have finally gotten around to reading it after starting and stopping it a few times.

It is kind of a story of two halves, one concerning the Second World War occupation of the Greek island of Cephallonia and the other concerning the inhabitants of said island as they deal with the war, love and attempts at writing Greek histories.

It is sublimely written in places: there were times when I was completely lost in the prose, especially when Beriniéres wrote about love in exactly the way I feel about it and not many authors have ever been able to convey before:

“Love is a temporary madness, it erupts like volcanoes and then subsides. And when it subsides, you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your roots have so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part. Because this is what love is. Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promulgation of promises of eternal passion, it is not the desire to mate every second minute of the day, it is not lying awake at night imagining that he is kissing every cranny of your body. No, don't blush, I am telling you some truths. That is just being "in love", which any fool can do. Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away, and this is both an art and a fortunate accident.”

But then there were times when it was just dull and uninviting and I felt like it had dived too hard to the bottom of the ocean and it didn't seem like it would ever rise to the surface again. It was an odd journey to go on, not only as we follow the plot and the various love interests of the characters, but how the writing could go from the sublime to the rather ordinary.

It is a beautiful book, but it was just let down by trying to be far superior with every single word, instead of having its moments and being satisfied with that. Definitely one to pick up and, if you do, really try to stick with it through to the end because it will touch your soul, but you have to work for it.


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Sul filo di una scrittura semplice e immediata si dipana un romanzo assai completo.
Il ritmo è incalzante fino alla fine, i personaggi si fanno amare (sarà perché a tratti mi ha ricordato L'amore ai tempi del colera?), l'ambientazione storica e geografica ben curata, la devastazione della guerra assolutamente realistica (ora che ci penso, un po' mi ha ricordato anche La Ciociara).
Unico difetto: verso il finale l'autore prende ad andare un poco di corsa. Per tutto il resto, non c'è che da ribadire che la guerra tira fuori il peggio dell'uomo, ma fa uscire anche il meglio dalla letteratura.

They meet, they fall in love, and then they don't see each other for thirty years until they are magically reunited and realize they were intended to spend their whole lives together but somehow misread the instructions on the box. Don't you just hate it when that happens?

This book is spectacular. There were whole sections that I read over and over because they were so beautifully written and even one particular chapter that I made my whole family read - and even though none of them are readers they all thought it was fantastic!! I can honestly say I have never read a book that could move between genres so easily, with comedey and tragedy completely interwoven. Read it Read it!!!

Love is a temporary madness. It erupts like an earthquake and then subsides. And when it subsides you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your roots have become so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part. Because this is what love is. Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promulgation of promises of eternal passion. That is just being "in love" which any of us can convince ourselves we are. Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away, and this is both an art and a fortunate accident.

Quite possibly up there as one of the best novels I have ever read. It's taken me a long time (for me) to finish it but it's that sort of book it needs to be read slowly and enjoyed. It is moving, controversial, educational, informative, beautiful, romantic and startling.

It is funny in a very dry way, it is sad and made me cry on more than one occasion. It is at times brutally honest. It takes no prisoners as it denounces the Second World War and each countries part in it for what they really are!

It's not one of those books that could really be read more than once but if you haven't read it, you should!

Rather easy read, a nice story against the background of the (disastrous) Italian occupation of Greece in World War II. Contains a lot of characters (of which some historical ones such as Mussolini) and angles. With bits on the cruelty of war and a beautiful love story. In short, nice holiday reading material, but the lyrical writing style, a bit like Marquez, just didn't appeal to me. Stopped reading just before halfway.
(Update: I had this rated rather harshly, but I'm removing that, given I didn't finish it)

“Love is a temporary madness. It erupts like an earthquake and then subsides… That is just being ‘in love’ which any of us can convince ourselves we are. Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away, and this is both an art and a fortunate accident” – Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, Louis de Bernieres

Take an idyllic Greek island that “smells of pines, warm earth, and the dark sea” where its hardworking inhabitants eke out a quiet living. Throw in a lonely mountain goatherd, a wise and kindly doctor, and his beautiful but willful daughter. Add a mandolin-playing Italian Captain (as suggested by the title) and the story promises music and romance. The stage seems set for a charming, bucolic story because Louis de Bernieres introduced Cephallonia as a place “where vicious emotions could not exist”.

Wrong. Corelli's Mandolin tells a devastating WWII story of Cephallonia being pillaged and despoiled during the occupation by, first the Italian, then the German armies, and finally their own guerilla fighters. War stories are extremely painful to read and this one is equally horrific in its depiction of brutality and wartime atrocities.

Yet this story shines in many ways. It is a moving insider perspective of war (a mix of first- and third-person narratives) as reported by the soldiers who are compelled by duty, against their will, to be party to the official conspiracies propagated by paranoid dictators. Soldiers, like Carlo Guercio, come to realize with deep shock and revulsion there is no reasonable excuse for the cause they are fighting. It is also remarkable how enemies become friends when they recognize the human impulses, motivation, and fears they share in common. It is marvelous to read about the islanders' grudging acceptance giving way to affection for the Italian invaders.

De Bernieres created a cast of wonderful characters in this novel. Dr. Iannis is the sweet and kind doctor one would love to have as a father. Carlo Guercio, the gay thespian, deserves to be celebrated for the magnanimity of his love for his comrades in arms. Captain Corelli, more a musician than a soldier, has an irresistible and irreverent personality. He forms a latrine opera club among his men, which endeared him to me. Pelagia, the attractive village lass and apple of every soldier’s eye, is much more than just a pretty face. Evil befalls each of these characters and I kept reading and hoping they would be spared.

Of course, there is the romance between Captain Corelli and Pelagia. Ironically, it is the war that first installs Corelli in Dr. Iannis’s house as a billeted captain who eventually falls in love with Pelagia. It is also the war that eventually separates them. It is sweetly told (embarrassingly in part) but mostly delightful.

Read Corelli's Mandolin. It is a beautiful story where the horrors of war threaten but cannot deplete the wellspring of love, courage, and goodness that keeps us human.

Thank you, Kevin Ansbro, for the book recommendation. It has, as you rightly pointed out, "humour, pathos, and depth".