Floria

About the Book

Born in a small village near Florence, Italy, in 1922, Floria Calugi spends her childhood on the sunny slopes of the Italian countryside. Her father is transferred to Florence when she is a teenager, and she spends her high school days in the city.

The advent of World War II coincides with her graduation from high school, and brings an abrupt end to her carefree existence when her father is recalled into the Italian Army. Despite the war raging around her, Floria attends the University of Florence. However, her family does not escape the horrors of war. They endure hunger and evacuation, and Floria is nearly raped. At the end of the war, she marries an American serviceman and arrives in the United States only to have him tell her that marrying her was a mistake. Their marriage ends in divorce. Brokenhearted, Floria moves to California where she meets and marries John Leet.

In the following years, John and Floria raise seven children together. However, life continues to present challenges, and she must cope with the pain of losing her husband to illness and her eldest son to an auto accident within two years of each other. Floria finds the strength to persevere through the love of her family and her faith. From a rural village in Tuscany, Italy, to San Jose, California, Floria: An Autobiography reveals Floria's journey of unwavering courage.

About the Author

Floria Leet came to the United States from Italy in 1946. She studied foreign languages and literature at the University of Florence. Leet raised her family of seven children in California, where she currently lives near Santa Cruz.