'Vivid' SUNDAY TIMES
'Fascinating' SPECTATOR
'Utterly compelling' DAILY MAIL

Corruption and violence dominated twentieth-century Sicilian life, as the Mafia rose to power. This is the story of one man who stood in opposition.

In 1986, the largest Mafia trial in Italy's history took place. Sitting in the gallery was Leonardo Sciascia, one of the greatest European writers of the twentieth century.

Sciascia had come of age alongside the Mafia. He witnessed it infiltrate every level of Italian politics and grow into an international, highly successful business. In 1961, he published the first Mafia novel, and throughout his life he issued dire warnings about what would happen if its power was not curbed. Many Italians regarded him as the only true moral figure in a country beset by corruption.

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.

'Brilliant and powerful... Unforgettable' JUNG CHANG
'Accomplished, balanced historical biography' LITERARY REVIEW
'Magnificent and deeply affecting' PHILIP HENSHER
'Vivid and knowledgeable... the book [Moorehead] was destined to write' LUCY HUGHES-HALLETT
'Terrific' IRISH TIMES