Thirty-One Days of Italians 2023-2024 List

Thirty-One Days of Italians

Italian Immigration

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Helen Barolini (1925-2023) Called the Dean of Italian American Writers, Helen Barolini, author of more than fifty literary works including her classic novel Umbertina, is skillfully adept in depicting Italian American culture from a woman’s point of view. The granddaughter of Italian immigrants, Barolini traveled among cultures after her marriage to an Italian journalist. She has received numerous awards, among them “Best American Essays” (twice), the Society for the Study of Multi-Ethnic Literature of the United States’ “Lifetime Achievement Award,” “Sons of Italy Literature Award”, and Americans of Italian Heritage “Literature and the Arts Award.” For Umbertina, published in 1979, Barolini, received the “Women in Literature” Award from the American Committee on Italian Migration. The book has been a mainstay in college classes that examine women and culture, and Umbertina was reissued in 1999. Barolini traveled between the United States and America, conducting seminars about Italian American culture. Official Website Helen Barolini Papers [Syracuse University] Selected Stories by Helen Barolini Italic Identity - Chapter IV: Italicity by Helen Barolini [PDF] Helen Barolini: Life Story John Ciardi (1916-1986) Poet laureate, etymologist, awarded numerous honors, and namesake of the award which honors poets for their significant contributions to Italian American poetry, John Ciardi was the son of Italian immigrants who migrated to Massachusetts. In 1938, he graduated Magna Cum Laude from Tufts University, and as a recipient of the Avery Hopwood Award for poetry, he attended the University of Michigan. In 1940, Homeward to America, his first book of poems was published. Ciardi taught at Harvard University and Rutgers University, wrote 21 books of poetry, 16 volumes of children’s poetry, hosted a radio show on NPR for nine years, and is well known for his translation of Dante’s Inferno, among many other accomplishments.

Daniela Gioseffi (1941) Born in New Jersey and surrounded by a large Italian family on her father’s side, Daniela Gioseffi began her diverse career as a peace activist and journalist, moving to classical acting, and then teaching and writing. She received several scholarships and grants, and while attending Montclair University, her early poetry was published in the campus literary magazine. Gioseffi’s first collection of poems, Eggs in the Lake, was published in 1977, and since then she has published four more collections, a novella, a novel, and short fiction. Winner of numerous literary awards and grants for poetry and performance poetry, Gioseffi has traveled throughout the United States and Europe, reading and lecturing from her works, and she has been interviewed on television and radio stations, including BBC and NPR. She has published reviews, conducted interviews, is an active member of many literary associations, and the founder of several Web sites. In 2007, Gioseffi received the "John Ciardi Award for Lifetime Achievement in Poetry." In 2002, her verse was engraved in marble in Penn Station. Author and Activist: The Daniela Gioseffi Story  Daniela Gioseffi Biography Poets & Writers: Daniela Gioseffi Poetry Foundation: Daniela Gioseffi Writing for Change: Daniela Gioseffi, Poet with Passion for Activism Poem: A Longing So Complete R.A. Salvatore (1959) With over 30 million copies of his books sold and 22 on The New York Times best-seller lists, fantasy and science fiction author R. A. Salvatore has created a special genre of fiction, capturing the imaginations of readers worldwide. Most of his books are series – the popular Forgotten Realms and DemonWars Saga – and his works have been translated into 14 languages. Among the 19 sagas, other series include The Legend of Drizzt, The Icewind Dale Trilogy, Neverwinter Saga, and Paths of Darkness. In college, Salvatore switched majors from computer science to journalism after reading J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. He wrote his first manuscript in 1982, and held other jobs until he began writing full time in 1990. A collection of his work at his alma mater, Fitchburg State College in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, includes numerous manuscripts and papers from published and unpublished works. In American Library Association regional conferences, Salvatore has given talks on why young adults are interested in fantasy and adventure fantasy. His first novel, The Crystal Shard, was published in 1988, and set a course for a career as a prolific writer. Other projects include stand-alone novels; writing the story for the video game Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone, among others; the first – Vector Prime (and several subsequent books) – in the Star Wars series of novels; and collaborating on stories for comic books. R. A. Salvatore Website R. A. Salvatore [Macmillan Publishers] Forgotten Realms [Bibliography] Dungeons & Dragons’ The Legend of Drizzt Fantastic Fiction Giovanni Schiavo (1898-1983) Cited by many as the person most responsible for initiating Italian American studies, most notably in history, Giovanni Schiavo was born in Sicily and migrated to America in 1915. He attended John Hopkins University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1919, and attended Columbia University and New York University for graduate studies in economics and banking. He worked on the editorial staff of several newspapers and in 1934 started Vigo Press, established to publish his works on Italians in America. Schiavo wrote a collection of books focusing on the Italian influence in America that included The Italians in Chicago Before the Civil War (1934), The Italians in America Before the Civil War (1934), Philip Mazzei, One of America's Founding Fathers (1952), Four Centuries of Italian-American History (1952; republished in 1993), Antonio Meucci: Inventor of the Telephone (1958), and The Italians in America Before the Revolution (1976). In 2005, a two-story brick building – built in 1928 in St. Louis, Missouri for an Italian restaurant and residence – was accepted in the National Register of Historic Places. The architect and builder Louis Scatizzi collaborated with the owner of the property and restaurateur Armando Pacini in designing the building, and the prominent architect was featured in The Italians in Missouri (1929), written by Schiavo. In the registration form for historical recognition, Schiavo’s book was cited as a resource; and the application itself gives an historic overview of the lives of Italian immigrants in the early 1900s. The library of the American Italian Cultural Center (in Metairie, a suburb of New Orleans) houses the Giovanni Schiavo Collection, the complete works and research materials. Many of Schiavo’s books are available from numerous online sources. Guide to Giovanni E. Schiavo Papers [PDF - Center for Migration Studies] Giovanni Schiavo and Professor Rudolph Vecoli: Their Legacies Four Centuries of Italian American History [Scroll down for searchable PDF - Italic Institute of America] Who Stole Meucci’s Invention? Excerpt from Antonio Meucci: Inventor of the Telephone] National Register of Historic Places Registration Form [Pacini, Armando, Restaurant]

Honorary Members

Index of Categories

Index of Names

2020-21 List of Names

2021-22 List of Names