AGP Executive Report

Comics: Lucca Comics & Games is set to welcome Marvel editor C.B. Cebulski and artist Peach Momoko, putting Italian fans at the center of a major comics event. Publishing: Italian newspaper La Stampa is expanding into the US with a new team, extending its reach beyond Italy. Memoir: Sonia Gandhi has shared a first glimpse of Belonging: A Journey of Love, due November 10, recalling how she met Rajiv Gandhi in Cambridge. Literary Heritage: A new feature explores Umberto Eco’s library and the books that shaped the Italian writer and scholar. Italian Abroad: Sarajevo is marking the 26th Week of the Italian Language in the World, celebrating Italian language and culture.

Lucca Comics: Marvel figures Peach Momoko and C.B. Cebulski are among the names heading to Italy’s comics festival. Memoir: Jeremy Renner presented the Italian debut of My Next Breath at Rome’s Alice nella Città festival, sharing his account of his near-fatal accident and recovery. Italian Publishing: La Stampa is expanding into the US with a new team, while fresh attention turns to Umberto Eco’s library. Publishing Rights: European publishers are asking EU and UK regulators to challenge Meta’s AI terms. Book-to-Screen: Italian producer Gianni Nunnari is set to produce a feature adaptation of Brian Selznick’s Rome-set queer YA novel Run Away With Me.

La Stampa Goes Stateside: The 159-year-old Italian daily has launched a US digital operation, with teams in New York and Washington and plans to build a network of contributors across all 50 states. Umberto Eco’s Legacy: A new library in Bologna celebrates the novelist and scholar with a collection of well-used, annotated books that reflects his wide-ranging interests. Medieval History: Historian Chris Wickham, who died aged 76, reshaped understanding of medieval Italy and Europe through influential studies of ordinary people and social change. Italian Fiction on Screen: Polish director Michał Marczak will make his narrative-feature debut with Perfection, adapted from Vincenzo Latronico’s novel, shortlisted for the 2025 International Booker Prize.

Screen Adaptation: Rome-set YA novel Run Away With Me is heading to the screen, with author Brian Selznick adapting his own book and Rome-born producer Gianni Nunnari producing. Publishing Rights: European publishers have asked EU and UK regulators to challenge Meta’s AI terms, raising fresh concerns over how publishers’ work may be used. Comics and Crossovers: Ahead of Lucca Comics, chief Emanuele Vietina discussed the festival’s vision of bringing comics, film and video games together.

Memoir Launch: Sonia Gandhi has shared the first look at Belonging: A Journey of Love, due November 10. The memoir traces her journey from post-war Italy to India, and the personal losses that shaped her life. AI and Publishers: European publishers are asking EU and UK regulators to halt Meta’s new terms, which they fear could let the company use website content in AI products. The dispute echoes earlier clashes, including a legal challenge in Italy. Book-to-Film: Oscar-winning director Gabriele Salvatores has begun shooting The Lüneburg Variation in Trieste, adapting Paolo Maurensig’s novel about a decades-long rivalry played out over a chessboard.

Comics & Publishing: Ahead of Lucca Comics & Games, Jonathan Hickman says his 3W/3M universe is moving from digital to print with Dark Horse, adding a publishing angle to his visit. Italian Authors: Physicist and bestselling science writer Carlo Rovelli’s new book, On the Equality of All Things, draws on ancient Taoist stories to question fixed divisions such as life and death. Book Fairs: Belgrade’s fair opens with Italy among its international exhibitors, but participation is down: 300 direct exhibitors are expected, compared with 416 last year.

Games Publishing: Mechs vs. Minions is set for European retail in December, with an Italian-language edition from Devir planned for 2027. Book Production: Italy’s SoFiGraf, through subsidiary GV Group, has acquired UK printers CPI Books and CPI Antony Rowe. The businesses produce more than 100 million books a year, and the deal nearly doubles GV Group’s size. Comics & Culture: Lucca Comics director Emanuele Vietina highlighted the festival’s crossover between comics, film and video games.

Italian Comics: Lucca Comics director Emanuele Vietina says the festival sees film, video games and comics as part of a shared creative vision. Comic-book writer Riccardo Secchi reflects on the enduring reach of Alan Ford in the Balkans. Books on Italy: Journalist Jason Horowitz brought his book The Italian Job to an event at Osteria Mozza, while a new children’s book celebrates family and Italian baking traditions.

Book-to-Screen: Fabel Entertainment has secured rights to Emanuele Midolo’s forthcoming The Devil’s Business, about Archbishop Paul Marcinkus and Vatican finances. Penguin imprint Century plans to publish it in June 2028; Italian producer Picomedia will co-produce the TV adaptation with Tom Fontana. Comics & Protest: The One Piece pirate flag has resurfaced in demonstrations in Italy, France, Belgium and Greece, showing how manga imagery can become a shared symbol of resistance. Lucca Comics: Festival chief Emanuele Vietina highlights the event’s growing embrace of film and video games alongside comics.

Italian Comics: Riccardo Secchi is taking over as writer of Alan Ford, the long-running Italian comic created by his father, Luciano “Max Bunker” Secchi, and artist Magnus. The series has a devoted following across the former Yugoslavia. Press Freedom: Proceedings against Domani journalists over reporting on Defense Minister Guido Crosetto raise concerns about protecting sources and the risks of criminal cases chilling investigative journalism. Books & Authors: Lexicographer Susie Dent discusses her love of The Lost Estate and her own books, including the word-a-day collection Words for Life and two cosy crime novels. Italy Memoir: In The Italian Job, American reporter Jason Horowitz draws on 25 years in Italy, recounting encounters with the Vatican, Silvio Berlusconi and everyday Italian life.

Comics & Publishing: Lucca Comics and Games director Emanuele Vietina says the festival’s 60th edition, running Oct. 28–Nov. 1, will celebrate the crossover between comics, games, film and TV, with a major exhibition tracing the event’s history. Bookshop News: A Feltrinelli bookstore at Turin’s Porta Nuova station was vandalized during violent cost-of-living protests, with books thrown onto the floor. Translation: Turkish author Ahmet Ümit will meet translators and publishers in Istanbul on Oct. 20–22 to discuss bringing his work to readers worldwide, including the literary bridge between Türkiye and Italy. Children’s Books: A new title celebrates family, culture and Italian baking traditions.

Bookshop Caught in Unrest: Cost-of-living protests turned violent across Italy, with 28 arrests and 141 police officers injured. In Turin, demonstrators entered a Feltrinelli bookstore and threw books onto the floor. Publishing Business: GV Group has bought CPI Books after an international bidding process, a notable publishing-sector deal. Italian Stories in Print: A new children’s book celebrates family, culture and Italian baking traditions. Journalist Jason Horowitz has also presented The Italian Job, a memoir about his 25 years reporting from Italy, including five as Rome bureau chief for The New York Times. Dante Revisited: A new translation explores how 14th-century Italian scholar Benvenuto da Imola drew on Arthurian accounts in his commentary on Dante’s Divine Comedy.

Italian Children’s Books: A new title celebrates family, culture and Italian baking traditions, bringing food heritage into children’s publishing. Comics & Publishing: Marko Djurdjević discusses Orken ahead of Lucca Comics & Games 2026, with the interview offering a preview of the event’s comics programme. Publishing Business: GV Group has bought CPI Books following an international competitive bidding process. Literary Legacy: British author Frances Stonor Saunders, who exposed the CIA’s cultural influence in The Cultural Cold War, has died aged 60.

Italian Authors: Molise physician and writer Veronica Palladino discusses Beyond the Curve, her 2026 book on giftedness, neurodivergence and creativity. Books & Heritage: A new children’s book celebrates family, culture and Italian baking traditions, while broadcaster Rick Campanelli’s memoir Tempted looks back on growing up in a large Italian-Canadian family and his gambling addiction. Italian Literature: Features explore Italian, African and postcolonial writing in Cape Town and Francesco Dimitri’s novel Pan, spotlighting Italian storytelling in different literary settings.

Italian Children’s Books: A new title celebrates family, culture and Italian baking traditions, bringing a distinctly Italian theme to children’s publishing. Literature Abroad: A feature on Italian, African and postcolonial literature in Cape Town places Italian writing in a wider cross-cultural conversation. Author Recognition: Colm Tóibín is set to receive an honorary degree from an Italian university, highlighting the country’s ties with international literary figures.

Italian Children’s Books: A new title celebrates family, culture and Italian baking traditions, bringing the country’s food heritage to young readers. Publishing Business: GV Group has acquired book printer CPI Books following an international bidding process. Literary Connections: Colm Tóibín will receive an honorary degree from an Italian university, while a Cape Town feature explores links between Italian, African and postcolonial literature.