Tieqa Fuq Kittieba Maltin (297 pages + xiv, a De La Salle Brothers Publication) This is my first book ever published. It came out in February 2004, thanks to the interest shown and collaboration of Mr. Charles Zerafa of De La Salle Bookshop, Malta. The book is about 40 different Maltese writers, from poets, to playwrites and novelists. The timespan covers some 100 years of literature: from national poet Dun Karm Psaila (born 1871) to young poet Noel Fabri (born 1960s). It also categorizes the authors according to their birth place.
The various chapters were originally articles which were published earlier on different local newspaper literary pages. Practically it's a work which took me 4 whole years to write. The book is intended for those students who are reading Maltese literature at Ordinary, Intermediate and Advanced level, but also for those who have a general interest in the subject. The chapters are accompanied by photos of the 40 writers, short biographical notes, and pieces from various interviews which either I personally made or which I took from local newspapers. It also has an introduction by the veteran writer (today in his ninties) Guze' Chetcuti, playwrite, novelist, literary critic and poet.
The reader can find interesting information and studies about writers such as Agostino Levanzin, Oliver Friggieri, Mario Azzopardi, Achille Mizzi, Daniel and Alfred Massa, Victor Fenech, Alfred Palma (translator of "The Divine Comedy" of Dante and great part of Shakespear's plays into Maltese), Manwel Cassar (who emigrated to Australia in the 50s), Marjanu Vella and many others. I'm sure that even Maltese emigrees will find such a book illuminating and useful.
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