The Turin International Book Fair is back from Thursday, May 9, to Monday, May 13. It features nearly 2,000 events at Lingotto and 650 more scattered throughout the area.
This edition of the Turin Book Fair promises to be the largest ever, boasting 1 The Turin International Book Fair is back from Thursday, May 9, to Monday, May 13, featuring nearly 2,000 events at Lingotto and 650 more scattered throughout the area. This edition promises to be the largest ever, boasting 137,000 square meters of space and an additional 15,000 seats in the Congress Centre Auditorium to accommodate attendees.
With over 800 stands, 51 rooms, and 180 laboratories, the fair is set to be a bustling hub of literary activity. Annalena Benini, the new editorial director of the event, will officially open proceedings on Thursday morning, joined by guests such as the Minister of Culture, Gennaro Sangiuliano, and the Minister of Education, Giuseppe Valditara.
They will be preceded by welcoming remarks from Silvio Viale, president of Turin’s association as the city of books, Mayor Stefano Lo Russo, and Region President Alberto Cirio.
Impressive lineup of speakers
The lineup of speakers includes notable figures like the director-general of Ice, Lorenzo Galanti, the German ambassador to Italy, Hans-Dieter Lucas, and other diplomatic representatives.
Renowned American writer Elizabeth Strout, winner of the Pulitzer Prize, will kick off the salon on May 9th with a lecture titled “The Very Slow Start of My Very Fast Career”. The highly anticipated appearance of Salman Rushdie happens on May 10th alongside Roberto Saviano.
In addition, confirmed guests include: Nobel laureate Abdulrazak Gurnah, the Austrian illustrator Nicolas Mahler, Guadalupe Nettel, David Nicholls, the Argentinian author Camila Sosa Vilada, publisher Antoine Gallimard, Jill Abramson, Jeff Kinney, Marie-Aude Murail,Mercedes Ron, and Philippe Lechermeier.
This year’s theme, “Vita Imaginary” (Imaginary Life) pays homage to the imaginative realms and the legacy of Natalia Ginzburg. Illustrated by artist Sara Colaone, the poster captures the enduring enchantment of literature, capable of shaping worlds and challenging our reality.
Seven Sections
In addition to the general programming, this year sees seven sections introduced, each focused on a central theme, curated by writers, intellectuals, and artists.
The sections and curators are Melania Mazzucco curating the Art section; Cinema is in the hands of Francesco Piccolo. Publishing is curated by Teresa Cremisi, Information by Francesco Costa, Lightness by Luciana Littizzetto, Romance by Erin Doom and the Novel by Alessandro Piperno.
The host region, Liguria, will be prominently featured, and Germany will also take centre stage, with a dedicated stand in the Oval pavilion. The “Literatur Parade” will showcase 25 German-speaking authors from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, alongside the “Read Parade,” a literary celebration reminiscent of a vibrant Love Parade, complete with a festive float and DJ set winding through the city streets on May 11th, starting from Lingotto.
Invisible Authors: The Art of Translation
Curated by Ilide Carmignani, l’Autore Invisibile has reached its twenty-fourth edition. There are four sections which focus on: a comparison between great names of international literature and their Italian translator; the retranslations of the classics (this year, Wuthering Heights and Mary Poppins); the translator’s toolkit (including AI this year); and finally translations to and from German, guest language of the XXXVI edition of the Salone del Libro.
The translation programme also features a masterclass by the winner of the 2023 “Giovanni, Emma and Luisa Enriques” translation prize, the illustrious Greek scholar and Italian publisher Nicola Crocetti, about “Translating from the so-called minority languages”.
Celebrating two centenaries
The Turin Book Fair will also celebrate two centenaries this year. First, the 100 years since the death of Franz Kafka, perhaps best known for representing the hallucinatory and anxiety of the West at the turn of the 20th century.
Secondly, it is 100 years since the birth of Goliarda Sapienza, the author of The Art of Joy. The masterpiece, published posthumously, is testimony to one of the first non-conformist and independent writers of Italian literature.
