The second edition of Jesolo Libri: Words and Ideas is coming up from July 14 to 19, 2025. Six evenings—with free admission in Piazza Milano—featuring the most beloved writers, the undisputed stars of the bestseller lists and summer reading.

The program

Monday, July 14, at 9:00 p.m.

LELLA COSTA – Women Who Made History
From Eleanor Roosevelt to Franca Valeri, from Virginia Woolf to Artemisia Gentileschi: portraits of women who made history, each in her own way. There is also a feared Chinese female pirate, a brilliant Iranian mathematician, and an American farmer who invented windshield wipers. The book *If I Can’t Dance, It’s Not My Revolution* (Solferino) recounts the personal connection between Lella Costa, actress and playwright, and these sometimes-forgotten female figures.

Moderator: Roberta Scorranese, journalist for *Corriere della Sera* and writer

Tuesday, July 15, at 9:00 p.m.

MATTEO BUSSOLA – Fragility and Dreams: A Bridge Between Adults and Teenagers
Matteo Bussola often explores the parent-child relationship and the world of adolescents. In his novel *La neve in fondo al mare* (Einaudi), he delicately portrays the fragility of a teenager and his father, together in a child neuropsychiatry ward where the boy is hospitalized. The misunderstandings, but also the ability to accept one another. In his new novel *Il talento della rondine* (Salani), we find the dreams and friendship of two young people amid dance, the art of drawing, and first loves.

Moderator: Paolo Armelli, journalist for Wired and writer

Wednesday, July 16, at 9:00 p.m.

CATENA FIORELLO – The World of Her Characters
A multifaceted writer with infectious enthusiasm, Catena Fiorello gives us an overview of the characters in her novels. From the endearing Ciatuzzu, protagonist of the novel of the same name (Rizzoli), who loses his mother as a child in the 1960s and is taken from Sicily by his father to Belgium, to Lucia, protagonist of Picciridda (Giunti), who, also in the 1960s, is entrusted to her grandmother while her parents emigrate to Germany. And then there are the comedic adventures of the female protagonists of the Monte Pepe saga: Rosa, Nunziatina, Maria, Giuseppa, and Sarina, who, amid arancini and cannoli, recount their lives in *Five Women and an Arancino* (Giunti), *Marites’ Cannoli* (Giunti), and *Granita and Baguette* (Giunti).

Moderator: Alessandra Tedesco, Radio 24 journalist

Thursday, July 17, at 9:00 p.m. 

MARCO MALVALDI AND ALESSANDRO ROBECCHI – Noir with a Twist
From a new adventure featuring the old-timers of Marco Malvaldi’s BarLume to Alessandro Robecchi’s black comedy: two noir authors deliver two crime novels tinged with irony. With *Piomba libera tutti* (Sellerio), Malvaldi once again takes us into the world of the old-timers at BarLume—who have also become a TV series—with a “neighborhood” investigation: the victim is a woman detested by her neighbors. With *Il tallone da killer* (Sellerio), Robecchi, on the other hand, takes a break from his recurring characters and delivers a caustic black comedy that pokes fun at the world of contract killers. A gathering of ironic noir works that don’t forget to offer social commentary.

Moderator: Alessandro Trocino, journalist for Corriere della Sera

Friday, July 18, at 9:00 p.m. 

ILARIA TUTI – When History Meets the Thriller
Ilaria Tuti is known for her thrillers featuring Teresa Battaglia, the police commissioner suffering from Alzheimer’s who first appeared in *Fiori sopra l’inferno*. But alongside her crime novels are historical novels such as *Fiore di roccia*. In Risplendo non brucio (Longanesi), the author has created a blend of these two narrative styles, crafting a thriller set in 1944 between Hitler’s headquarters and the Risiera di San Sabba in Trieste, inspired by real events.

Moderator: Alessandra Tedesco, Radio 24 journalist

Saturday, July 19, at 9:00 p.m.

CAMPIELLO PRIZE
As is tradition, the five finalists for the Campiello Prize are stopping in Jesolo. On stage are the finalists: Marco Belpoliti with *Nord Nord* (Einaudi), Wanda Marasco with *Di spalle a questo mondo* (Neri Pozza), Monica Pareschi with *Inverness* (Polidoro), Alberto Prunetti with *Troncamacchioni* (Feltrinelli), and Fabio Stassi with *Bebelplatz* (Sellerio).

Moderator: Maria Pia Zorzi, journalist