#ItalianLitMonth n.33: Abandonment: An Eritrean-Italian Story

Posted on by Leah Janeczko

by Oonagh Stransky A recovered gem from the Italian postcolonial literary canon, this heartrending and kaleidoscopic work of creative non-fiction by Erminia Dell’Oro was originally published in 1991 by Einaudi. Twelve-year-old Sellass undertakes the dangerous journey to Massawa in search of a better life, going on to become a water carrier. Carlo musters up the … Continue reading #ItalianLitMonth n.33: Abandonment: An Eritrean-Italian Story

#ItalianLitMonth n.32: Translating Art Books: Inside Pompeii by Luigi Spina

Posted on by Leah Janeczko

by Emma Mandley As a translator who specializes in texts about art history and antiquities, I’m lucky enough to spend my time poring over fascinating works of art, from classical antiquity to modernist architecture. New topics always mean new and often demanding research: in recent times I’ve had to familiarize myself with terminology for subjects … Continue reading #ItalianLitMonth n.32: Translating Art Books: Inside Pompeii by Luigi Spina

#ItalianLitMonth n.31: No Means No, or Does It? A Moving Testament to a Young Woman’s Courage

Posted on by Leah Janeczko

by Clarissa Botsford The Unbreakable Heart of Oliva Denaro by Viola Ardone is a novel about consent: a living and breathing testament to the #NoMeansNo and #MeToo movements. It’s the kind of book that people read in one night and then pass on to friends. It also lends itself to class and book-club discussions precisely … Continue reading #ItalianLitMonth n.31: No Means No, or Does It? A Moving Testament to a Young Woman’s Courage

#ItalianLitMonth n.30: An Enticing Introduction to Contemporary Italian Poetry

Posted on by Leah Janeczko

by Johanna Bishop A good anthology is a fine buffet. A good anthology of poetry in translation is a buffet of dishes that are probably new to you. A good anthology of contemporary poetry in translation is a buffet of dishes that are new to everyone at the party. And Tempo: Excursions in 21st-Century Italian … Continue reading #ItalianLitMonth n.30: An Enticing Introduction to Contemporary Italian Poetry

#ItalianLitMonth n.29: Reading in Translation: Shaping a Culture of Reviewing Italian Literature in Translation

Posted on by Leah Janeczko

by Stiliana Milkova Rousseva In April 2023, the PEN America Translation Committee’s Manifesto on the state of literary translation in America called on editors, reviewers, and review publications to acknowledge the translator’s agency in the creation of a literary text. In other words, the Manifesto called for combatting the prejudices against translation and translators in … Continue reading #ItalianLitMonth n.29: Reading in Translation: Shaping a Culture of Reviewing Italian Literature in Translation

#ItalianLitMonth n.28: Glowrushes by Roberto Piumini: A Timeless Italian Masterpiece

Posted on by Leah Janeczko

by Leah Janeczko A wealthy lord summons an artist to his palace to paint murals in the three windowless rooms to which his young son is confined due to a life-threatening illness. The artist’s boundless generosity turns the simple commission into a years-long labor of love, and his paintings allow the boy to vicariously experience … Continue reading #ItalianLitMonth n.28: Glowrushes by Roberto Piumini: A Timeless Italian Masterpiece

#ItalianLitMonth n.27: Maria Grazia Calandrone’s Your Little Matter

Posted on by Leah Janeczko

by Antonella Lettieri Maria Grazia Calandrone was born in Milan in 1964, following her mother’s affair with an older man. A few years earlier, Lucia – that is, Maria Grazia’s biological mother – had been forced by her own father to marry a notoriously violent and often drunk man from her village in a rural … Continue reading #ItalianLitMonth n.27: Maria Grazia Calandrone’s Your Little Matter

#ItalianLitMonth n.26: “Born a Rebel” Is a Cry for Gender Justice

Posted on by Leah Janeczko

Author interview by Lisa Mullenneaux Yvette Samnick was born in Okala, Cameroon, in 1985 of a polygamous father, who had four wives. She earned a Master’s degree in Political Science and International Affairs from the University of Calabria in 2016 and in 2019 published her first book, Perché ti amo (Pelligrini, Cosenza). In 2024 Edizione E/O (Rome) launched her … Continue reading #ItalianLitMonth n.26: “Born a Rebel” Is a Cry for Gender Justice

#ItalianLitMonth n.25: The Two Lucas

Posted on by Leah Janeczko

by Wendell Ricketts In 2009, the mononymous Italian singer-songwriter known as Povia came within a hair’s breadth of winning that year’s Sanremo contest, the annual “festival of Italian song,” a much-celebrated competition named for the coastal town in Liguria where it takes place. Sanremo is sort of a cross between The Lawrence Welk Show and … Continue reading #ItalianLitMonth n.25: The Two Lucas

#ItalianLitMonth n.24: Convivial Poems by Giovanni Pascoli and the Podcast “An Ancient Language for a Modern Soul”

Posted on by Leah Janeczko

by Elena Borelli Giovanni Pascoli (1855–1912) is celebrated as a pioneer of modern Italian poetry, and has been hailed by Seamus Heaney as “one of the greatest poets of all times”. Reflecting the spirit of late 19th-century Italy, his works are influenced by French Symbolism and Decadentism, while also drawing from Italy’s rich classical tradition. … Continue reading #ItalianLitMonth n.24: Convivial Poems by Giovanni Pascoli and the Podcast “An Ancient Language for a Modern Soul”