“An author of authentic distinction.”—The New York Times

Robert is an American soldier in occupied Rome during the final months of World War II. Lisa is a young woman obliged to work in Mamma Adele’s on the Via Flaminia. The passion they feel for one another is fueled by their separate, and equally desperate, needs. But can love between victor and vanquished ever blossom? This classic story of a poignant love affair, informed by the aftermath of war, is as relevant and moving today as when it was first published. Alfred Hayes’s screenplay for Paisan, directed by Roberto Rossellini, was nominated for an Academy Award.

Alfred Hayes
Alfred Hayes was born in Britain in 1911. He was a novelist, television writer, screenwriter, and poet. He worked principally in Italy and the United States. He is perhaps best known for his poem Joe Hill, set to music by Earl Robinson. Hayes graduated from New York's City College, worked briefly as a newspaper reporter, and began writing fiction and poetry in the 1930s. During World War II he served in Europe in the U.S. Army Special Services. He stayed on in Rome and became a screenwriter of Italian neorealist films. His screenplay for Roberto Rossellini's film, Paisan (1946) was nominated for an Academy Award.

• Jun 26 2007
  Mostly Fiction: "[A] sensitive and gorgeously wrought study of connections and misconnections, …this masterpiece of the period perfectly captures a short, but unique, period in history."
  
• Oct 26 2006
  Publishers Weekly: "Hayes musters authentic detail and masterly control in this still-crackling melodrama."
  
• Oct 11 2006
  Kirkus Reviews: "An enthralling narrative, and art of a high order."