Using anthropological, historical, and political science approaches, Pamela Ballinger demonstrates how memory shapes Istrian understandings of Italian identity. World War II and the events of 1945, specifically the creation of the Free Territory of Trieste and the division of the upper Adriatic territory into Allied and Yugoslav administered zones, form the backdrop for the study that concentrates on the crystallization of collective memory for Istrian esuli (exiles who settled in Trieste) and rimasti (those who remained in Yugoslavia). Grounded in the literature re-evaluating the impact of the Cold War, her work skillfully weaves a narrative that uncovers competing visions as well as common tropes in Istrian visions of ‘Italianness’ constructed in the climate of state formation and dissolution since World War I. Ballinger's major contribution is her analysis of the “multi-directionality” of identity formation (p. 45) that has implications far beyond the Istrian case.

Instances of violence, or at least memories of violence, serve as nodes of analysis of Istrian action and reaction to perceptions of Italy and Italian national identity. Ballinger is perhaps at her best in her nuanced treatment of questions of victimhood related to debates over deaths in the foibes or limestone pits in the Carsic interior. She demonstrates how the historiography of victimhood serves both as a unifying factor promoting common understandings of the World War II period and a divisive factor fueling accusations of ethnic persecution and political duplicity (145–67).

Ballinger's approach is consciously comparative. She makes particular use of available studies to compare the Istrian situation in Trieste to that of the Cubans in Miami (40, 56, 172, 264). She argues that Istrian exiles in Trieste constructed, for the most part, a group identity based on visions of Italian purity. In contrast, those who remained in Istria understood their Italianness in terms of hybridity. Perhaps here her conclusions could be teased out. Late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century migration to Trieste created a transient community of Istrians. Istrian exiles after World War II were not necessarily strangers settling in a foreign land. In addition, the labeling of those in Trieste as exiles, rather than refugees as many observers and the international community claim, reflects a particular understanding of events influenced no doubt by Ballinger's reliance on exile organizations in Trieste and elsewhere. Ballinger skillfully avoids problematic statistics used by various factions to justify or de-legitimize Istrian claims. However, avoidance raises questions that might well be addressed in future work. For example, it would be interesting to know if the visions propounded by exile groups can be generalized to the broader population of Istrians in Trieste who have eschewed all ties to Istrian politics.

In the broader perspective, Ballinger's account demonstrates how shifting state priorities resonate with the interests of small groups and how states manipulate visions of the past to serve current agendas. The study also offers a reminder that historiography as much as history can influence identity, and that memory can be a potent force driving national identification.