As a masterclass in pure storytelling delight, The Glass Pearls might be its most radical reissue yet.

But we can acknowledge that these yesterdays – which Ginzburg fictionalised, but which were lived by families across Europe and the world – are all of ours, and reverberate today as we face a fresh wave of political and social turmoil. Set against the backdrop of Italy between 1939 to 1944 - the months of anxiety before the country entered the war through to the tension following the Allied victory - "All Our Yesterdays" follows the lives of two families during the period of great turbulence. Meanwhile, as Anna decides to seek an abortion, an unexpected lifeline appears in the shape of Cenzo Rena, a family friend who suddenly proposes marriage while agreeing to take on the baby.But as readers, we have the chance to see a few of these people, under unimaginable pressure, with chaos and violence everywhere around them, responding with transcendent and unforgettable moral beauty. In the meantime, I hope you get a chance to read All Our Yesterdays as I think you’ll really appreciate it! The adolescent Anna is mystified by these developments: are Emanuele and Danilo both in love with her sister? Emeric Pressburger’s 1966 novel The Glass Pearls, now reissued, is a very different type of war-themed fiction. Ginzburg has written a truly remarkable novel here, a story of ordinary people living through extraordinary times, beautifully told with a warmth and generosity of spirit that reflects the Italian character.

It’s about two families in Italy, one family well off and one not so well off before World War II and during it.

With air raids, constant movement of soldiers and distant bombs going off, the two families prepare their basement for survival mode. That said, I think these characters may well be based on real people, so they’re probably relatively close to the truth even if they might seems a little clichéd to us as readers.