Fernando Vescia's memoir describes his experiences as an Italian citizen born and raised in Alexandria, Egypt. "A Cotton Thread" offers the reader a vivid glimpse into the fascinating history of the so-called "foreign colonies" in Egypt, and details the challenges faced by the author's family in Alexandria and Cairo during World War Two. When Italy joined the Axis Powers, all Italian men age 18 to 70--including the author's father--were interned in a desert camp by order of the British authorities. With her husband gone and their bank accounts frozen, Vescia's mother had to scramble to find ways of supporting the household.
The author left Cairo in 1948, at a time when Egypt had begun to expel the foreign colonists, to study medicine at Johns Hopkins. Dr. Vescia practiced and taught medicine for 32 years in Palo Alto, California.