Publishing the Southwest

Publishing the Southwest We are very pleased to publish a selection of essays by Italian scholars of the American Southwest. The essays here represented—by Emanuela Jossa, Francesco Marroni, Mario Materassi, and Manuela Plana— are a part of the proceedings from the sixth International Forum for the Study of Literary Cultures of the American Southwest (2005), an annual event sponsored by the University of Arizona and the University of Florence and alternating between the two universities. This is a truly remarkable binational conference, the masterwork of Gianni Spera, UA professor emeritus and director of the Arizona Program in Italy, and an academic leader whose enthusiasm for this collaboration drives the project like an undeniable force of nature. It is a privilege to work with him, and to work with our two editorial advisors—Charles Tatum and Mario Materassi—in developing a publishing program to accompany this distinguished forum. —Joseph Wilder ...