Don Camillo Takes the Devil by the Tail
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Don Camillo and His Flock
by Giovanni Guareschi
Overview
FROM THE PUBLISHER
I've yet to find something written by the publisher, so instead I'll include this summary from
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/doncamillo/flock.htm.
More adventures of the big, outspoken priest and his opposite number in the Communist camp. With both America and Russia sending over supplies and representatives in an effort to win the people's allegiance (and votes), it's up to Don Camillo and Peppone to negotiate a particularly Italian brand of peace in their little village. Whether their aim is to help get a local boy his big break in show business, to defend a thoroughbred dog from a cruel master, or to insure that no one in the Little World goes hungry when it can be prevented, this team proves that sometimes there's no friend like a good enemy.
My thoughts
This is the second (and third) book I've read about an Italian priest, Don Camillo, who has conversations with God about unlikely subjects such as politics. Peppone is the mayor and leader of the local Communist party. The book revolves around those two characters who are always pulling a fast one on the other. Each short chapter is a story on its own, and has a couple of punchlines that will make you gasp! I'm loving it!
I shared my first Don Camillo book with a Catholic friend who enjoyed it a lot and couldn't wait to pass it on to another friend. Me? I'm not Catholic but I still appreciated the humor in this young adult book.
Favorite Passage
You really need to know Don Camillo to understand this passage, and when you do, I think you'll fall off your chair laughing!
Don Camillo wished for his eyes to be transformed into loaded machine guns, but all he could do was bow his head as if to say: “Thank you, Mr. Mayor. May the heavens open and strike you dead!”
