Calendar

The theme of freedom throughout the history of man’s thoughts. For Björn Larsson, “Freedom cannot be attained without imagination and dreams, but it also requires realism, discipline and courage“. But is there freedom in an era of individualism, conformism, globalization and the internet? The theme is discussed by author Björn Larsson, anthropologist Marco Aime and writer and essayist Ernesto Ferrero.

Marco Aime
is a lecturer in Cultural Anthropology at the University of Genoa, and has conducted research in the Alps and in Western Africa. As well as a series of scientific papers, he has published children’s fables, essays and narrative stories, including: Le radici nella sabbia (EDT, 1999); Il primo libro di antropologia (2008), L’altro e l’altrove (with D. Papotti, 2012), La fatica di diventare grandi (with G. Pietropolli Charmet, 2014), Contro il razzismo (with G. Barbujani, C. Bartoli and F. Faloppa, 2016) for Einaudi; Il lato selvatico del tempo (Ponte alle Grazie, 2008); Verdi tribù del Nord (Laterza, 2012); Gli specchi di Gulliver (2006), Timbuctu (2008), Il diverso come icona del male (with E. Severino, 2009), Gli uccelli della solitudine (2010), Cultura (2013) for Bollati Boringhieri; La macchia della razza (2012), Etnografia del quotidiano (2014) for Elèuthera; Tra i castagni dell’Appennino (with F. Guccini, 2014), Senza sponda (2015) for Utet, Dialoghi sull’uomo.

Ernesto Ferrero
has worked in publishing for many years, including a period as managing editor at Einaudi and, later, as director of Turin’s Book Fair from 1998 until 2016. His many books include the novels N. (Strega Prize, 2000), L’anno dell’Indiano, La misteriosa storia del papiro di Artemidoro, Disegnare il vento. L’ultimo viaggio del capitano Salgari (Campiello Prize, 2011), Storia di Quirina, di una talpa e di un orto di montagna, as well as a biography of Barbablù, all published by Einaudi; an essay entitled Lezioni napoleoniche (Mondadori), his book of memories, I migliori anni della nostra vita (Feltrinelli), a pictorial biography of Italo Calvino (Album Calvino, Mondadori), and Primo Levi. La vita and le opere (Einaudi). Ferrero has also translated the works of Flaubert, Céline and Perec, and also contributes to “La Stampa” and many of Italy’s other leading daily newspapers.