ICI London is pleased to continue the “The Italian Library” initiative in collaboration with Ornella Tarantola and our library, The Montale Library. A series of evenings where we talk about books, with and by Italian writers, covering topics from Sanremo to horoscopes, from Gadda to podcasts, from Virginia Woolf to Artificial Intelligence.
Sixteenth Event:
23 October
6:30 pm
At the Montale Library
An evening with Gianni Rodari, Vanessa Roghi, and Beatrice Sica
“All uses of words for everyone: this seems like a good motto to me, with a nice democratic ring to it. Not because everyone is an artist, but because no one should be a slave.”
With her work “A Golden and Silver Book: Around Gianni Rodari’s Grammatica della Fantasia”, author Vanessa Roghi takes us into the world of the writer, where boys and girls are seen as individuals in the present and not as future adults from a generic childhood.
An evening dedicated to Gianni Rodari, his “art of inventing stories,” and that universe where “mistakes are necessary, useful like bread, and often even beautiful.” Vanessa Roghi will talk about this universe in conversation with Beatrice Sica. Readings by Marco Gambino.
The event will be held in Italian and in person.
Reserve your spot HERE
Vanessa Roghi is a historian and author of cultural programs for Rai. As a scholar, she has explored the history of education, to which she has dedicated several monographs. At the same time, she has also studied the history of the spread of heroin in Italy. Among her works are “The Subversive Letter: From Don Milani to De Mauro, the Power of Words”, “The Brave Sparrow: Cipì, Mario Lodi, and Democratic Education”, and “A Golden and Silver Book: Around Gianni Rodari’s Grammatica della Fantasia”, published by Sellerio. She currently teaches Media and Education History at LUMSA University.
Beatrice Sica is a Lecturer in Italian Studies at University College London. Her research interests include 20th-century Italian literature, Italian culture during fascism, futurism and European avant-gardes, and more recently, children’s literature. Her very first academic publication was on Gianni Rodari (Palazzeschian Presences in Gianni Rodari’s Work for Children, in “Studi Italiani”, 2003), and she has always been passionate about the author of Grammatica della Fantasia.
Gianni Rodari was born in Omegna in 1920. After obtaining a teaching diploma, he worked as a teacher for a few years. After World War II, he began a journalistic career, collaborating with numerous periodicals, including L’Unità, Il Pioniere, and Paese Sera. Starting in the 1950s, he began publishing his works for children, which immediately gained enormous success with both the public and critics. His books have been translated into numerous languages and have received several awards, including, in 1970, the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen award, considered the “Nobel Prize” of children’s literature. In the 1960s and 1970s, he participated in conferences and meetings in schools with teachers, librarians, parents, and students. It was from the notes collected during these meetings that Grammatica della Fantasia was born in 1973, becoming an essential reference for anyone involved in reading education and children’s literature. Among his most significant works are: The Adventures of Cipollino, Gelsomino in the Land of Liars, Nursery Rhymes in Heaven and on Earth, Tales Over the Phone, The Book of Mistakes, Twice Upon a Time There Was Baron Lamberto.
Marco Gambino is a theater, film, and television actor. Born in Palermo, he has lived in London for over twenty years and acts in Italian, French, and English. His latest work, Those About to Die, is a television series released on Amazon Prime in July 2024.
A special thanks to Marta Niccolai.