Book description
Road to Valour
is the inspiring, against-the-odds story of Gino Bartali, the cyclist
who made the greatest comeback in Tour de France history and continues
to hold the record for the longest time-span between victories. Yet what
ensured his permanent place in Italian hearts and minds were his actions
in between, when he secretly aided the Italian Resistance during World
War II.
Aili and Andres McConnon chronicle Bartali's journey, starting in
impoverished rural Tuscany where a scrawny, mischievous boy
painstakingly saves his money to buy a bicycle, and before long is
racking up wins throughout the country. At the age of 24, he stuns the
world by winning the Tour de France, becoming an international sports
icon in the process. But Mussolini's Fascists hijack his victory for
propaganda purposes, derailing Bartali's career, and as the Nazis occupy
Italy, Bartali undertakes dangerous missions to help those being
targeted. He shelters a family of Jews in an apartment he financed with
his cycling winnings and is able to smuggle counterfeit identity
documents hidden in his bicycle past Nazi checkpoints under the guise of
being a national hero in training. After the gruelling wartime years,
Bartali fights to rebuild his career as Italy emerges from the rubble.
Despite numerous setbacks and a legendary snowstorm in the Alps, the
chain-smoking, Chianti-loving, 34-year-old underdog comes back and wins
the most difficult endurance competition on earth - the Tour de France.
Bartali's inspiring performance helps unite his fractured homeland and
restore pride and spirit to a country still reeling from war and
despair.
Based on nearly ten years of research in Italy, France, and Israel,
including interviews with Bartali's family, former teammates, a
Holocaust survivor Bartali saved, and many others, this is the first
book ever written about Bartali in English and the only book written in
any language to fully explore the scope of Bartali's wartime work. Road
to Valour is the breathtaking account of one man's unsung heroism and
his resilience in the face of adversity. An epic tale of courage,
comeback and redemption, it is the untold story of one of the greatest
athletes of the twentieth century. Aili McConnon
is a Canadian journalist based in New York. She has written for
BusinessWeek Magazine, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and
The Guardian. She has appeared on ABC, MSNBC, and CNN and has earned
degrees from Princeton University, the University of Cambridge, and
Columbia University.
Aili and Andres are siblings, born in Toronto, and can be reached via
the Internet at www. roadtovalorbook. com
. Andres McConnon
graduated magna cum laude from Princeton University, where he majored in
history. He previously worked as a historical researcher for several
books. While researching and writing Road to Valor, he lived for a
period in Paris, Florence, and the Italian Riviera.
Aili and Andres are siblings, born in Toronto, and can be reached via
the Internet at www. roadtovalorbook. com
.
