The names of the have been disclosed five finalist writers of the thirtieth edition of the “Giuseppe Berto” literary prize, which is dedicated to first works. These are: Alessandro Della Santunionewith the novel «Little moved the other seas» (Marcos Y Marcos); Camilla Ghiotto with «Tempesta» (Salani); Valentina Parasecolo with “Private Chronicles” (Marsilio); Greta Pavan with «Almost nothing wrong (Bollati Boringhieri); Francesca Sensiniwith «The plot of Elena» (Ponte alle Grazie).
For the 30th edition of the prize created by Cesare De Michelis, Mogliano Veneto (Treviso) will host the prize-giving ceremony which will take place on 23 September next; the prizeIndeed, it enjoys the annual alternation between the Veneto and Calabria, or rather the two elective places of the great writer: Mogliano Veneto, where he was born, and Capo Vaticano (Ricadi) where he wrote some of his most celebrated and loved masterpieces, such as «Il Male Oscuro» and «La Gloria».
Also for this 30th edition the Award – which has always been reserved for “first works” that are identified for their originality of form and inspiration – confirms its original vocation, which is to discover and launch new literary talents. There were countless winners who, from the first edition onwards, established themselves on the national literary scene, confirming the extremely important work carried out by the award dedicated to the great writer. A’particular attention is paid to female writing by the jury of the 30th edition, as evidenced by the four out of five finalist writers.
«Among the selected works – commented the president of the jury Ernesto Ferrero, writer, critic and director of the Turin Book Fair from 1998 to 2016 – intense coming-of-age novels in which the protagonists lead a real search for their own identity , and in which their personal stories are intertwined with decisive events for our history, thus able to offer a cross-section of the Italy of yesterday and today, but also unpublished reinterpretations of some of the most fascinating myths of our literature”.
The Jury that evaluated the works in competition, presided over by Ferrero, is also composed of: Cristina Benussi, from the University of Trieste, Giuseppe Lupo, writer and professor at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart in Milan, Laura Pariani, writer, Stefano Salis, critic and journalist of Sole 24 Ore, Emanuele Zinato, of the University of Padua.
The winner, who will be announced during the final ceremony in September, will receive a prize of 5,000 euros, and another 2,000 will be distributed among the other finalists. The Berto Prize is promoted by the Giuseppe Berto Cultural Association, in which the writer’s daughter Antonia participates, and takes place in collaboration with the Municipality of Mogliano Veneto (TV), the Municipality of Ricadi (VV), and is realized with the financial support of two important sponsors, San Marco Group, and Distillerie Caffo.