Across the River and Into the Trees (Scribner Classics)

Set in Venice at the close of World War II, "Across the River and into the Trees" is the bittersweet story of a middle-aged American colonel, scarred by war and in failing health, who finds love with a young Italian countess at the very moment when his life is becoming a physical hardship to him. It is a love so overpoewring and spontaneous that it revitalizes the man's spirit and encourages him to dream of a future, even though he knows that there can be no hope for long. Spanning a matter of hours, "Across the River and into the Trees" is tender and moving, yet tragic in the inexorable shadow of what must come.