It will be a journey through classical roots and the anxieties of the present, between the violence of adolescence and the search for grace, between fathers and children, between desire and memory. This is what the 2026 Sila Award promises, unveiled yesterday morning at the Foundation’s headquarters, in the heart of the historic center of Cosenza. With the introduction of the president of the Foundation, Enzo Paolini, and the director of the Award, Gemma Cestari, the jurors Valerio Magrelli, Emanuele Trevi and Nicola Lagioia illustrated some of the peculiarities of the ten titles selected for the fourteenth edition.
The shortlist of books chosen includes works of great narrative depth that represent a journey through stories, ideas and reflections on contemporary Italy, with a gaze that broadens to touch the classical roots and the frontiers of desire. Here are the ten: Roberto Andò, «The crocodile of Palermo» (The ship of Theseus); Nicola H. Cosentino, «There is a lot of hope» (Guanda); Davide Enia, «Self-portrait: Instructions for surviving in Palermo» (Sellerio); Giulia Lombezzi, «The summer I killed my grandfather» (Bollati Boringhieri); the Gazzetta journalist Anna Mallamo, «I’ll see in the dark» (Einaudi); Rosa Matteucci, «Cartagloria» (Adelphi); Matteo Nucci, «Plato a love story» (Feltrinelli); Antonio Pascale, «Human things» (Einaudi); Romana Petri, «The girl from Savannah» (Mondadori); Claudio Piersanti, «The window on the port» (Feltrinelli)».
The tenth was presented by president Enzo Paolini, who wanted to underline the profound meaning of the Award and the work of the jury: «We looked for books that not only told stories, but that gave a portrait of a country in motion, with its contradictions, its wounds and its beauties. This decade seems to us to represent today’s Italy well: fragmented, certainly, but full of extraordinary narrative energies.” Paolini then thanked the jurors for their efforts. The director Gemma Cestari went into the merits of the criteria adopted: «We favored the quality of the writing and the ability of each author to intercept the great themes of our time. Whether we are talking about ancient philosophy or family violence, the mafia or unspeakable desires, what matters is the depth of the gaze. And in this dozen the looks are many and all original. This year, the presence of works that focus on the South as an existential and narrative laboratory is striking: from Mallamo’s Calabria to Andò and Enia’s Sicily, up to Campania. It is not an identity operation, but the confirmation that certain stories find their geographical necessity there.”
The Award juror Marta Petrusewicz, who recently passed away, was remembered by President Paolini who also announced an initiative dedicated to her: the Non-Fiction section will be dedicated to her memory. It is a way to pay homage «to an extraordinary figure of European culture – commented the president of the Foundation – a scholar who left a profound mark on historical, social and political reflection on the twentieth century».
In the coming weeks, the Foundation will organize a calendar of public meetings in which authors will dialogue with readers. The Jury will select the five finalists. The winner will be announced during a literary weekend in which Cosenza will become the stage for the best Italian literature.
