VARIOUS ARTISTS OPERA NAZIONALE BALILLA / [FASCIST YOUTH ORGANIZATION]. Group of approximately 46 journals, school books, & ephemera. Sizes vary. Condition varies, generally B+. This group includes 18 textbooks/class reading material; 24 journals - some with students' handwriting, for practicing math, lettering, Latin, taking notes and adding up grocery list prices; 4 ephemera items - advertisements for the Balilla uniform and baby food, a small timetable for 1935-36 school year, and an ad for FIM pens and school supplies. The Opera Nazional Balilla was a Fascist Italian youth organization from 1926 to 1937, when it became part of the Gioventu Italiana del Littorio. The name "Balilla" stems from the nickname of Giovan Battista Perasso, a Genoese boy who started a revolt in 1746 against the Habsburgs. The Opera Nazionale Balilla was established by law as an institution under the control of the Ministry of National Education in 1926. Initially, membership was voluntary, but it was later made compulsory for boys between the ages of 6 and 18, and girls between the ages of 8 and 14. Images available upon request.