Carmela's Books

Il ladro di fulmini was a going away gift from my mom for study abroad. I consider it pretty high up there with my other most prized possessions: my absolutely destroyed copies of Percy Jackson and the Olympians, complete with original covers, deformed spines, and a whole lot of water damage. I've definitely treated this version much more kindly.  If you couldn't already tell, Rick Riordan’s work has had a big impact on me. I can say without a single doubt that it was his books that got me into avidly reading. I started with them in the first grade and devoured them as every series came out, all the way through high school. I owe my choice of major and (future, fingers crossed) profession to him. That being understood, The Lightning Thief is really important to me. So, when I opened Il ladro di fulmini and saw “Non ho scelto io di essere un mezzosangue,” I did what every respectable publishing and Italian double major does. I slammed it closed and I screamed. To explain the ab...

I have seen a handful of Queer books, or books involving Queer characters, at various stores in Italy, but seeing Heartstopper at La Feltrinelli in Lecce still managed to surprise me somewhat. This was the first store I’d seen in Italy to specifically have an LGBTQ section, and even from across the room I was able to spot the various pride flags and the covers of Heartstopper’s first and fourth volumes, visibly turned out so you could see them. Maybe it’s because I’ve been re-reading all four volumes in preparation for the April 22nd Netflix series release, or maybe it’s because Alice Oseman and their works always manage to catch my eye no matter the situation, but, regardless, I scrambled over there real fast .  You can see the LGBTQ section behind me To my delight, they were indeed Italian translations of the books. The title wasn’t changed—though that honestly makes sense seeing as I can’t think of many easy translations of the word "heartstopper." “Heartstrings” is ...

  Aiden Thomas’ Cemetery Boys, regardless of edition or language, is a powerfully evocative book, perfectly snaring its readers amongst a carefully woven web of teenage love, witty humor, and the intense need to be seen that all queer youth have at one point felt.  A coming of age story at its heart, the book — which keeps its English title in its Italian edition—follows teenage Yadriel, a trans boy determined to prove himself to his Latinx community, all of whom are gifted with the ability to see spirits. When his cousin suddenly dies, Yadriel becomes determined to prove himself a real brujo. With the help of his cousin and best friend Maritza, he performs the ritual himself, and then sets out to find the ghost of his murdered cousin and set it free. However, the ghost he summons is not his cousin. It's Julian Diaz, the resident bad boy of his high school, and Julian is not about to go quietly into death. Aiden Thomas is a New York Times Bestselling author with an MFA in Crea...

Gruppo Mondadori's Oscar Vault, known for its trade translations of trending YA books, has acquired the rights to the Italian edition of Sue Lynn Tan's Daughter of the Moon Goddess.  Translator information and the Italian release date have yet to be made public. Tan describes the book as a "romantic fantasy of immortals, magic, and love, inspired by the legend of Chang’e, the Chinese Moon Goddess."  Daughter of the Moon Goddess  was first published in the US in January 2022 by Harper Voyager and is represented by Naomi Davis of Bookends Literary. Tan's sequel,  Heart of the Sun,  is forthcoming in November 2022.  Translation deals have also been made for Hungary, Brazil, Spain, Poland, Romania, Turkey, and Russia.