A Sicilian Man

Leonardo Sciascia, the Rise of the Mafia and the Struggle for Italy’s Soul

De: Caroline Moorehead

Narrado por: Ben Cura

Brought to you by Penguin.

Corruption, sleaze and violence were woven into the fabric of twentieth-century Sicilian life, as the Mafia rose to dominance; this is the story of one man who stood in opposition.

In 1986, the largest Mafia trial in Italy’s history took place in Sicily. The maxi-processo saw 471 men and 4 women take the stand, accused of kidnapping, extortion, drug trafficking and many thousands of murders. Sitting in the galley was Leonardo Sciascia, then aged sixty-five. One of the greatest European writers of the twentieth century, he had published the first Mafia novel, The Day of the Owl, in 1961, and was widely seen by Italians as a true moral figure in a country where corruption had seeped into every corner of public and private life.

Sciascia was born in 1921 and came of age as the Mafia grew to prominence across Sicily. Widespread poverty and hardship following the First World War meant that many Sicilians no longer recognised Rome’s leadership, which had left a void for local gangsters to fill. Witnessing the scale of corruption and violence, Sciascia predicted it would soon spread north, and he was right: by the 1980s, the Mafia had infiltrated every level of Italian politics and grown into an international, highly successful business.

In A Sicilian Man, prize-winning historian and biographer Caroline Moorehead charts Sciascia’s life against the rise of the Mafia, and lays out the thrilling and devastating struggle that ensued for Italy’s soul.

'This feels like the book [Moorehead] was destined to write' LUCY HUGHES-HALLETT
'Magnificent and deeply affecting' PHILIP HENSHER

© Caroline Moorehead 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026

Reseñas de la Crítica

In Moorehead’s expert telling Sciascia emerges as a unique force and talent (Francesca Angelini)

Moorehead offers a fascinating portrait of Sciascia’s life and tumultuous times (Ian Thompson)

I was deeply affected by this brilliant and powerful book and the moral issues it tackles that go far beyond Sicily or Italy. Unforgettable (JUNG CHANG, author of WIld Swans)

A fine and accessible introduction to Sciascia and his works… [A Sicilian Man] offers many interesting insights and is written with the brio that characterizes her recent biographies of Italian anti-fascist and Resistance fighters (Philip Cooke)

Accomplished, balanced historical biography

Vivid and disturbing but utterly compelling

The best non-fiction I read this year… fulfils its daunting task of giving a proper account of this great Sicilian writer, you will want to keep an eye out for it

Terrific (John Quin)

Vivid and knowledgeable... Caroline Moorehead has a profound understanding of Italy... This feels like the book she was destined to write (LUCY HUGHES-HALLETT, author of The Pike)

Sciascia is the noblest of Italian novelists, and in this magnificent and deeply affecting biography, Caroline Moorehead has given a full account of him, his people, his island, his tragic times (PHILIP HENSHER, author of A Small Revolution in Germany)