In praise of Maltese literature

On December 2, in the Marchese Scicluna Hall at the Naxxar Trade Centre, a ceremony was held where distinguished authors and publishers of Maltese literature were honoured.

Among the winners of the Premju Letterarju 2005 - Kotba 2004 was Mariella Pisani Bencini who came first in the romantic novels and short stories category.

This prestigious prize, sponsored by the National Book Council, was awarded to the romantic novel Tlett Nisa u Mara, which competed with seven other works in the same category.

This news was received with great joy by me, as president of the Ghaqda Filantropika Talent Mosti, and also by the committee members and this because, for many years, our organisation had deemed it in order to promote and show respect to our national Maltese language.

It was for this reason that we began holding discussions at Ir-Razzett tal-Markiz Mallia Tabone, in Mosta, which is the head office of our organisation. Our idea was to promote new publications so much so that special evenings are held when the works of classic and contemporary writers who contribute to the advancement of the Maltese language are read.

Talent Mosti will be pleased to invite Mrs Pisani Bencini in the new year to be one of its guests in the series Niltaqghu ma' l-Awtur and we do this as a sign of appreciation towards this lady, who has distinguished herself in the literary sphere.

This lady, a regular participant on TV, was one of the first to understand the importance of culture in our lives and who worked hard so that people could be informed about the cultural activities held in our islands.

Mrs Pisani Bencini was one of the first to understand the vast cultural importance which Ghaqda Talent Mosti has been promoting.

From time to time, Mrs Pisani Bencini visits Ir-Razzett tal-Markiz to film segments of her programme Meander. She does this with a charismatic fervour, revealing the various colourful activities organised and sponsored by Talent Mosti. It's in order to also mention here that we will never forget the assistance by the media in promoting our activities.

We notice with satisfaction that the Maltese book is being read by people beyond our shores and this thanks to both the author and the publisher.