The third edition of the Campiello Junior Award, born from the collaboration between the Il Campiello Foundation, Pirelli and the Pirelli Foundation, announced its winners during an event in the Sala del Ridotto of the Teatro Comunale of Vicenza. In the 7-10 year category, the prize was awarded to Angelo Petrosino for the book “A child, a cat and a dog” (Einaudi EL/Einaudi Ragazzi/Emme Edizioni). For the 11-14 year old category, however, Daniela Palumbo triumphed with the book “The most beautiful night” (Piemme).
The awarded books obtained respectively 67 votes out of 112 and 75 out of 113 (of which 1 blank) expressed by the two dedicated Popular Juries, each made up of 120 young people from all the regions of Italy and from abroad thanks to the collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. Having the final say on choosing the winners were, therefore, the children of the last year of primary schools for the 7-10 year category and of the three-year period of lower secondary schools for the 11-14 year category.
Second place for the 7-10 year old category went to Fabrizio Silei with “Il Grande Discorso di Cocco Tartaglia” (Emme Edizioni) with 25 votes, third place was taken by Elisa Ruotolo with “The Long Winter of Ugo Singer” (Bompiani) with 20 votes. For the 11-14 year category, however, Alice Keller with “It’s almost dark outside” (Risma Editore) received 22 votes, while Andrea Molesini with “Story of the pirate with a toothache and the dragon without fire” (HarperCollins Italia ) got 15.
The final ceremony, conducted by Valentina De Poli, director of “Topolino” for eleven years, together with the author and director Davide Stefanato, was accompanied by readings by the actor Piergiorgio Piccoli.
The winners will be celebrated on Saturday 21 September during the Campiello 2024 Awards Ceremony which will be held at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice.
The protagonists of today’s event in Vicenza were the finalist authors of the two competing categories and some members of the Award Selection Jury, composed of: Pino Boero, former full professor of Children’s Literature at the University of Genoa and President of the Jury, Chiara Lagani, actress and playwright, Michela Possamai, professor at the Iusve University of Venice, former member of the Technical Committee of Campiello Giovani and David Tolin, bookseller and member of the Alir board. Also speaking were Giacomo Possamai, mayor of Vicenza, Lara Bisin, vice president of Confindustria Vicenza, Enrico Carraro, president of the Il Campiello Foundation and Antonio Calabrò, director of the Pirelli Foundation.
Enrico Carraro, President of the Campiello Foundation declared: “The Campiello Junior represents another important piece in the chain of dissemination of culture that the Award has always dealt with. A project that strengthens the link between the business world and culture, investing in training of children and young people, future generations of citizens. The city of Vicenza welcomed the final of this edition with great enthusiasm, providing a fascinating context thanks to its artistic and cultural heritage. I thank Pirelli and the Pirelli Foundation for their always precious collaboration in the realization of this recognition which valorises those who, with talent and creativity, also deal with the education of our children”.
Pino Boero, president of the Selection Jury, added: “The excellent quality of the texts presented and admitted to the selection demonstrates the acquired authority of the Prize and indicates once again the potential of literature for children and adolescents: to entertain and educating at the same time is not a contradiction but a possibility because in books fantasy and rationality travel together; this was noticed by the young jurors who carried out the demanding task of choosing the winners with pleasure and intelligence and confirmed that the The attention and involvement of the young generations desired by Fondazione Il Campiello, Pirelli and Fondazione Pirelli is the right choice, capable of looking to the future”.
Antonio Calabrò, director of the Pirelli Foundation, concluded: “The common commitment of the Campiello Prize and the Pirelli Foundation continues. It is strengthened and finds new spaces and more solid opportunities for the involvement of territories and schools, as indicated by the presence in Vicenza, thanks to the commitment of the mayor and the Municipality, whom we sincerely thank. Stimulating the writing of good books for girls and boys and encouraging reading from the first classes of primary school means increasing sensitivity to imagination, adventure, journey of discovery. Helping to experience new stories, becoming passionate about new characters. In short, laying the foundations, through the pleasure of well-written words, for a better civil coexistence and a more balanced interweaving of cultural and social relationships”.