John Cabot University An American university in the heart of Rome, Italy

Italy Reads

Italy Reads is John Cabot University's community-based reading and cultural exchange program that began in 2009 with a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts for The Big Read Rome.

The Big Read Rome was a great success; students from nearly 20 Italian public and international high schools in Rome read Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, viewed the film at JCU's "Cinema Mockingbird," attended theater productions by The English Theatre of Rome, and actively participated in book discussions with JCU students.

The success of The Big Read Rome led John Cabot University to expand this American cultural exchange program to a wider Italian high school community and create our own program which we called Italy Reads. We now count 40 Italian public and international high schools and over 100 teachers of English and their students among Italy Reads participants.

We are pleased to announce that the book for Italy Reads 2013 is Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jhumpa Lahiri's The Namesake. The official edition of the book is the Harper Perennial edition (ISBN 978-0006551805).

Please see our Calendar of Events for a complete list of Italy Reads activities.

To register as an official Italy Reads 2013 participant, or to receive more information about Italy Reads, please e-mail us at italyreads@johncabot.edu  or speak with Ms. Gina Marie Spinelli at +39-06-68191223.

Participating teachers, students, libraries and book groups can attend a Keynote Address by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jhumpa Lahiri, watch the film adaptation of The Namesake, attend a production of the stage adaptation of the novel by The English Theatre of Rome, participate in Student Exchanges, and compete in a Student Video Contest . Participating teachers can also attend a day-long Italy Reads training workshop.

ITALY READS ACTIVITIES

• Keynote Address -- Participating teachers and their students will be invited to the Italy Reads Keynote Address delivered by Pulitzer Prize-Winning author Jhumpa Lahiri. See the Calendar of Events for details.

• Italy Reads Lectures -- Participating teachers and their students will be invited to John Cabot University to hear specific lectures relevant to themes of the novel. See the Calendar of Events for details.

• Film Screenings -- Participating teachers and their students will have the opportunity to schedule a free screening of the 2006 film adaptation of The Namesake, directed by Mira Nair, of  followed by a discussion session with Italy Reads Volunteers at John Cabot University. 

• Play Performances -- Participating teachers and their students will receive discounted tickets to The English Theatre of Rome's production of the stage adaptation of The Namesake. See the Calendar of Events for details.

• Student Video Contest -- Students participating in Italy Reads can enter a video contest to compete for significant cash prizes. See Student Video Contest for details.

• Student Exchanges -- John Cabot University students will be available to visit schools to lead discussions of the play in a student exchange program.  Students of participating Italy Reads teachers will also be invited to participate in discussions of the novel at the John Cabot University campus. Contact Italy Reads at italyreads@johncabot.edu  or call Ms. Gina Marie Spinelli at +39-06-681-91223 for details.

• Teacher Training -- Participating teachers can take part in a day-long workshop about the novel and the use of the teaching materials gathered by Italy Reads. Contact Italy Reads at italyreads@johncabot.edu  or call Ms. Gina Marie Spinelli at +39-06-681-91223 for details. Teacher Training Workshops will be offered on Saturday, 25 May, Friday, 31 May and Friday, 13 September. Only one of these three opportunities need be attended as they are replicas of one presentation which are scheduled in order to accommodate the busy schedules of participating high school teachers.

• Teaching Materials -- Through the Italy Reads  website and the JCU Frohring Library, teachers participating in Italy Reads have access to a wealth of supplemental electronic materials related to the novel.  See Resources for details. Contact Italy Reads at italyreads@johncabot.edu  or call Ms. Gina Marie Spinelli at 06-681-91223 for details.

• Books for Libraries -- Participating libraries can receive a limited number of free copies of The Namesake. Contact Italy Reads at italyreads@johncabot.edu  or call Ms. Gina Marie Spinelli at 06-681-91223 for details.