Montallegro Reads

A new literary festival in the heart of Sicily

Montallegro Reads is the cultural festival that, in 2026, brings the village of Montallegro to life for the first time. Located in the province of Agrigento, Sicily, and nestled near some of the island's most evocative beaches—between the Torre Salsa and Bovo Marina nature reserves—the town transforms into an open-air stage where the written word once again becomes the protagonist of collective life.

One meeting per month from April to September

The festival spans six months, with a monthly event from April to September 2026, totaling six meetings. The events are held in various locations throughout the village, both indoors and outdoors, weaving literature into the community's daily spaces: town squares, courtyards, and local halls host presentations, dialogues, and discussions with authors.

A municipal project with expert artistic direction

Strongly supported by the Municipality of Montallegro, the festival benefits from the expertise of cultural operator Roberto Bruccoleri, former artistic director of the "Libri in Cortile" festival in Agrigento. The stated goal is ambitious: to bring great literature to the community and make books the center of a human, cultural, and social rebirth for the territory.

Guests and books of the first edition

The 2026 program alternates between fiction, biography, and non-fiction, with deep roots in Sicilian culture. Announced events include:

• Roberto Mandracchia, who inaugurates the festival on Saturday, April 11th, with Don Chisciotte in Sicilia, at the Agatino Longo Multimedia Hall;
• Felice Cavallaro, director of the "Strada degli Scrittori," and journalist Matteo Collura, with their biographies dedicated to Leonardo Sciascia and Luigi Pirandello;
• the duo Gaetano Savatteri and Salvatore Picone, discussing the figure of Andrea Camilleri;
• Antonina Nocera, writer and literary critic from Palermo, with A San Pietroburgo con Dostoevskij (held on May 16th);
• Ruska Jorjoliani, a writer of Georgian origin, with a reflection on identity between Sicily and the Caucasus.

Literature, landscape, and local identity

More than just a series of presentations, Montallegro Reads was born as a community project: to bring readers closer to writers, enhance Sicilian literary memory, and offer the public a high-quality cultural season in a village far from the major circuits. The natural setting of the Agrigento territory, between beaches and nature reserves, accompanies the summer meetings in an intimate and welcoming atmosphere, built on dialogue and sharing.