Clara Sereni

Who is Clara Sereni?

Clara Sereni is an Italian writer of Jewish descent. She was born and married in Rome where she remained until 1991. Then she moved to Perugia, where she still lives.

She became known to critics and the public with her first book, Sigma Epsilon, an autobiographical revisiting of the frenzied political times marking her generation. Her second work, Casalinghitudine, written thirteen years later, is a kind of recipe book where each dish is linked with a particular moment of her own past, an indelible memory. Her popularity increased with short stories, such as Manicomio primavera and the novel Il gioco dei regni, which won her two literary prizes.

Sereni's activities also span the social and political arenas. In the Umbrian capital of Perugia she was elected Deputy Mayor, with the Social Policies portfolio, from 1995 to 1997.

In 1998, following a difficult personal situation, Sereni promoted the Città del sole NGO Foundation - a charity mental health organisation for the disabled and gravely afflicted.

She is also a columnist for the Italian newspapers l'Unità and Il Manifesto, and has translated and edited works by Balzac, Stendhal, Madame de la Fayette. Moreover, she has reviewed many books, among which in 1996 the important Si può, where five Italian journalists narrate a positive story of integration into society of the mentally disabled.