The City of Dronero, as part of the “Ponte del Dialogo” Festival and the “Venerati inchiostri – Festa del Lettore Ostinato” series, presents a literary event on the occasion of the Turin International Book Fair. Actor Luca Occelli will read selected passages from the book “Il salto dell’acciuga” by Nico Orengo, specifically those in which the author speaks of the Maira Valley.

The event will take place at 6:00 PM on Friday, May 15, in Sala Giolitti (Piazza Martiri della Libertà, 11), with free admission. The initiative is organized in collaboration with the Aragno Humanities Forum, the AFP Development Agency, and the Centro Studi Cultura e Territorio.

“Intertwining stories, ancient, old, and new; fishermen, women, financiers, salt smugglers, anchovy sellers… throughout the book, one can smell the scent of pink garlic, sea salt, hidden valleys, and Olga, the red-haired woman who passes through the pages like a comet among the mountain peaks.” This is how Mario Rigoni Stern effectively described Nico Orengo’s “Il salto dell’acciuga,” which was published in 1997 by Einaudi.

In this book, Orengo attempts to cross the crest of the hills and mountains that surround “his” territories of western Liguria and push toward Piedmont. He does so by following an ancient and adventurous trail: that of the salt and anchovy trade, a traffic that stretches back beyond the Middle Ages into the depths of fairy tales and myths.

The maritime world merges with the rural one; ancient legends evoke clashes and disputes of an epic nature, but also sudden reconciliations; the name of a village can become the key to uncovering an enigma. Was it perhaps the Arabs, weary of too many wars and raids, who became merchants of that “mountain fish” that preserves over time? What ambushes awaited the carts of the anchovy sellers? How far did their trade reach? Which villages are the center of a web of relationships that are also cultural? What are the rituals and songs that accompany the bagna cauda? And is it possible that it was born right on the beaches of Liguria, perhaps in the vessels where three old fishermen crush fragments of dried fish at dawn?
Orengo narrates, remembers, and weaves together historical facts and village stories, chasing lost trades, scents, and colors; he is enchanted and enchants us, guiding us to discover the poetic and human truths hidden within the millennial journeys of salt and anchovies.

What is there in Dronero? – the author asks in a famous passage – the Devil’s Bridge, the “droneresi al rhum” chocolates, and the memory of Giolitti on the balcony of the “Nuovo Gallo” hotel in Piazza Martiri della Libertà. The very same building that will host Luca Occelli’s reading, in the exact hall where the statesman used to receive the local mayors.

For information: eventi@afpdronero.it