Italy’s controversial presence at the Frankfurt Book Fair

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Italian delegates will come to the 76th Frankfurt Book Fair as guests of honor. This is the first time since 1988 that Italy has been given such an honorary status.

The Italian delegation, led by the Association of Italian Publishers (AIE) and represented by Alessandro Giuli, Italian Minister of Culture, will be present alongside a delegation of writers. But this presence of representatives of Georgia Meloni’s government – and the absence of prominent literary figures – does not fail to raise questions.

The story of Frankfurt Book Fair dates back over 500 years, even before the advent of printing. Initially, it was a small fair intended for the sale of handwritten books. The fair in its more established form was established in the 15th century.

And the institution has been revived since 1949. Since 1976, the fair has chosen a country as the guest of honor, and each of them has a special exhibition hall and a full-fledged literary program.

Italy has only been guest of honor once, in 1988, and succeeds Slovenia.

Participants… and notable absences

The physicist and author Carlo Rovelli, the writer Susanna Tamaro and the philosopher Stefano Zecchi make up the Italian delegation. Big names in Italian literature will also be present, even if the press noted one notable absence: that of Roberto Saviano. The 45-year-old author is known for his writings on organized crime, notably his investigative book “Gomorra”. Threatened with death, he lived for several years under police protection.

When Roberto Saviano was not included in the initial list of Italian representatives, many commentators saw this decision as a sidelining by the government of the writer, known for his sharp vision of Italy and his criticism unvarnished by the far-right government of Giorgia Meloni. Last year, the Italian Prime Minister sued Mr. Saviano after he called her a “bastard” in a television interview.

Roberto Saviano has since confirmed that he will participate in the fair, at the request of its director Jürgen Boos.

Innocenzo Cipolletta, president of the AIE, assures that the program was developed from proposals from publishers, among which Saviano “was not initially included”.

“Other great Italian writers were missing, and any absence is obviously a great regret, but on the other hand, respecting procedures is a way of guaranteeing impartiality”explains Mr. Cipolletta.

“There have been many misunderstandings, and we are sorry for that, but no one ever intended to exclude Saviano for political reasons. And I would add that we are happy that he is here in Frankfurt.” , he adds.

Roberto Saviano, who spoke about the situation, says he does not “don’t think that [sa] presence in Frankfurt is a victory, but a form of resistance”.

Italian literature is experiencing a new boom

The last time Italy was the guest of honor, many considered it a consecration for the literature of this country. Figures like Umberto Eco have been at the forefront of the world’s literary scene, while Nobel Prize winner Dario Fo has continued to spin his play “Mistero Buffo.”

According to Mr. Cipolletta, Italian publishing is now experiencing an upturn, with sales peaking, since the pandemic.

“New authors who tell the history of today’s Italy appear in bookstores, in publishers’ proposals”, explains Mr. Cipolletta, who points out that the global reach of Italian literature has also expanded: over the past twenty years, “the translation rights we sell abroad have quadrupled.”

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More than 90 authors will travel to Frankfurt as part of the official delegation, including Alessandro Baricco, Annalena Benini, Paolo Cognetti, Claudia Durastanti, Antonio Franchini, Nicola Lagioia, Claudio Magris, Francesca Melandri and Igiaba Scego.

Although not part of the official delegation, Roberto Saviano will also participate in a discussion with Deniz Yücel, co-president of PEN Berlin, on the topic “Literature and politics. Writing in an illiberal age”.

Despite the presence of many ambassadors of Italian literature, other Italian writers expressed concerns about the program’s pro-Meloni bias.

“Freedom of expression is punished in our country,” Paolo Giordano, an Italian writer known for his novel “The Solitude of Prime Numbers,” told the press. “It’s true, it’s not just an impression.”

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Others claimed to have been outright censored by the state. Antonio Scurati, whose novel “M, Child of the Century” chronicles the rise of Benito Mussolini, said he was denied the right to speak on public radio on Italy’s national day . “This happens to those who criticize those in power,” he said Wednesday in Frankfurt.

Innocenzo Cipolletta, president of the AIE, refutes the idea of ​​censorship of Italian representation: “All authors present in Frankfurt are free to address any subject, to express themselves freely inside the pavilion of the Italian guest of honor, which, it is no coincidence, is a place, a symbol of debate and civics”, he declares.

The Italian delegation was placed under the aegis of Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli – a Meloni loyalist – whose positions towards Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin have sparked controversy, but Innocenzo Cipolletta assures that the IEA acts in full confidence. independence.

“No opinion is prohibited and is, on the contrary, encouraged, with total respect, of course, for the ideas of others,” he specifies.

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