Iranian “My Share” wins Italian Boccaccio Literary Prize

Organized by the Boccaccio Literary Society, three annual awards are designated to the best Italian writer, a foreign writer and a journalist, which are presented to the winners each year on the second Saturday in September.

Boccaccio (1313 -1375) was an Italian author and poet, a friend, student, and correspondent of Petrarch, an important Renaissance humanist and the author of a number of notable works including “Decameron” and “On Famous Women”.

“My Share”, the first novel by the author, features the story of an Iranian woman named Masumeh who comes from a traditional family. She is forced to marry a man whose main concern is to achieve his revolutionary ideals rather than fulfill his family responsibilites. She faces much hardship throughout her life and has to face life’s problems by herself.

Saniei regards the major character of the story as symbolic of many Iranian women.

The book was first published by Ruzbehan publication in 2003 in Iran and since has been reprinted many times, the Persian service of ISNA reported on Tuesday.

Translated into Italian by Sepideh Ruhi and Narges Monsef, the book hit the bookstores in Italy this year.

“Emmaus” by Italian writer Alessandro Baricco, and Italian journalist Giovanni Minoli are the other two winners of Giovanni Boccaccio Literary Prize.

“Father of the Other Individual” is Saniei’s other credit.

Photo: An Italian copy of “My Share”