Arrivederci Leopolis, the Lions War - The Great War is not yet over

Beginning his story Arrivederci Leopolis, The Lion´s War on September 11, 2001, with the Twin Towers attack, George Perantoni and co writer Sam Ivey, set the scenary for a review of history from the First World War to the present. In Orlando, Florida, Vittorio Perantoni, then 89 years of age, sees that event as but a continuation of what began in 1914 - the First World War. But why?

"In his teens during the 1930's, an Italian living in Lwow, Poland, Vittorio and his brother Luigi work with their father, Carlo, at operating the family's successful winery-pasta tavern, and managing their import business of distributing wine from Italy. But Hitler's 1939 invasion of Poland changes all of that. When the Italian Consulate orders Italian nationals to leave Poland, the Perantonis are suddenly forced to leave their considerable wealth behind. Victor's girlfriends will also be left behind as he flees to Switzerland to avoid the Italian fascist draft. Left too are his friends Andrè, Franki, and "Padre." All of these persons will be scattered as they face the fears, hardships, and physical abuses of the war. The war drags on as Europe burns. His friends Andrè and Franki are commandeered into the Russian Army; his girlfriend Dani faces deportation to a Nazi death camp; and Vittorio too is nearly captured and imprisoned. All are wondering: will life ever be the same again?".

Set against the background of World War II, this is a story of the 20th century as experienced through the lives of an Italian family and his friends. It is this family focus that keeps the narration interesting till the end.

Depicting historical events of the early 20th century, World War I is seen as the precursor to the destruction of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.

The beginning of facism in Italy, and the consequences of the rise of Hitler and Mussolini, are reviewed from the real life story of the author´s father and uncle, workers of a prosperous winery tavern and wine export business in Lwów, Poland at 1929.

Ilustrated by original photographs taken by his uncle Victor, the story recounts the demolition of the polish city of Lwów,which was bombed by the German Luftwaffe and later occupied by the Soviet army; when the Italian army take the city, they are masacred by their own German allies. It continues by explaining the evolution of the 2nd World War and how his family became polish partisans, and finally how they fight the Italy campaign with the Polish Allied 2nd Corps.

The attack on Italy by the brave Polish 2nd Corps led to the defeat of Fascism, and it was the beginning of the end of the war. Sadly, these brave Polish Soldiers were given neither a happy homecoming to their families, nor a victorious welcome as patriots of their country. They were denied their victory, as their western allies had betrayed them.The majority of these soldiers were from Lwow (Leopolis) and from the Kresy borderlands of Eastern Poland, and most of them could never go back home. "Likewise, even Victor Perantoni was denied returning to the city of his birth. This is the significance of "Arrivederci Leopolis" in the original title "The Lion's War", says author George Perantoni.

The book depicts the horrific experiences endured by the Polish and Ukrainian residents of Galitzia, the citizens of Lviv/Lwów, and the harms inflicted upon northern Italian residents of Lake Garda and the Valpolicella region, specifically the town of Volargne di Dolcé, from where the Perantoni family was origined.

The United States is the destination of the family when war finally ends. But for George Perantoni, war has no end, and we are still in it.

The present situation with Ukraine is a clear demostration that he could be right.

The book can be bought at Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/Arrivederci-Leopolis-Lions-War-ebook/dp/B005DCL1AS/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1313506289&sr=1-1) as a Kindle Book, and there is the serious intention of taking this story to film.