Twist of the scene to the voting of the five of the 2021 Strega Prize, for the first time by the Roman Theater of Benevento, in an evening hosted by Gigi Marzullo in live streaming on Raiplay, which sees Emanuele Trevi with his 'Due vite' (Neri Pozza), 256 votes, and great excluding the writer Teresa Ciabatti with her 'Seva Bellezza' (Mondadori), given among the favorites in the final race. Ciabatti, supported by Sandro Veronesi, had already been close to winning the award in 2017 with 'The most beloved' (Mondadori).
"I dedicate this five to the memory of Luigi Spagnol who was by my side until the last vote in 2012. He would be happy, today I thought of him", said Trevi who ten years ago arrived on the wire close to winning the Prize Witch with 'Something Written' (Ponte alle Grazie). "The other time I was first too and I lost. But I'm happy. It's a beautiful job that Neri Pozza did, a small publishing house that did a crazy job, a very nice team and it happened both times ", explained the author again. Elegant, in linen suit, Trevi, who is working on the Meridiano on Philip Dick with Emmanuel Carrere, in 'Due vite' which is a novel, an autobiography, a special book, tells the story offriendship that tied him to two writers who died prematurely, Rocco Carbone and Pia Pera, giving us back their personality. "The only thing that's important in this type of written portrait is to look for the right distance, which is the style of uniqueness," he says in the book. In second place Edith Bruck with 'Il pane perduto' (The ship of Theseus), 221 votes, closely followed, in an almost equal merit, by Donatella Di Pietrantonio with 'Borgo sud' (Einaudi), 220 votes. To Bruck, to whom the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella conferred the honor of Knight of the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic and who received a visit from the Holy Father at her home last February, was awarded tonight, in remote connection with the President of the Chamber Roberto Fico,the 2021 Strega Giovani Prize. The writer and poetess dedicated it to "the many young people I have met in schools for many years, who pay me back with their reading and I will go on as long as I have breath. This is my mission and also a moral duty. Young people are better than we think ".
Survivor of Auschwitz, Dachau, Bergen-Belsen, in 'The lost bread' traces her life, from deportation to concentration camps, when she was still a child, to the present, because now "it is even more important to remember".
In 'Borgo Sud' Donatella Di Pietrantonio, already winner of Campiello in 2017, tells about the sisterhood and the consequences of the lack of love, taking up the thread of the story of Arminuta and Adriana who have become adults and now face very painful trials, but know they can rely on the unconditional love that binds them.
In a group of five in which women prevail and in which the book published by an independent publisher is in first place, Giulia Caminito is in fourth place with 'The water of the lake is never sweet' (Bompiani), 215 votes , in which the young writer looks inside and outside of herself to tell us firsthand what the transition to this new century has meant for those who are now thirty years old, like her, in the province of Rome, on Lake Bracciano, where she was born .
And in fifth place Andrea Bajani with 'The book of houses' (Feltrinelli), 203 votes, in which he tells the story of a person, an indefinite I, built through the houses he lived.
In the evocative setting of the Roman Theater, in an evening opened by the mayor of Benevento, Clemente Mastella, who hopes the "final of the Prize will be brought to this city", for the first time since the enclosure of the pandemic, representatives of the publishing houses met , editors and writers. Out of 660 voters, 600 cast their votes. Sandro Veronesi, winner of the Premio Strega 2020 presided over the seat.
Now the race to the final which will be on 8 July at the Ninfeo di Villa Giulia, in compliance with the anti-Covid rules, starts. .
Trevi is the favorite: "when they read the five I thought I was fifth because they read the votes backwards, starting from last place", he jokes.