Franco Matticchio's Animal Readers: A Playful Critique of Publishing

In a period of decline for the publishing industry, as noted by booksellers and confirmed by data from the Italian Publishers Association (AIE), Franco Matticchio's animals offer an optimistic exception. His latest book, "La libreria degli animali" (The Animal Library), published by Edizioni Henry Beyle in Milan in 2026, features twenty-two drawings of animals transformed into avid readers. These creatures have abandoned their wild state to occupy the place once held by humans, sitting comfortably in armchairs, like the bulldog under the warm light of a reading lamp, wearing a bow tie, with a footrest and a novel open halfway in their left paw. Others, like the rabbit, sink into a double bed, staring with lively eyes at the page of a volume in the most silent manner. The book forms an imaginary zoo where Matticchio has gathered his noble intellectual bestiary. The work is a playful commentary on the state of reading and publishing, suggesting that even animals are more devoted to books than humans. The publication is a 53-page volume, and the drawings are accompanied by text. The book was released in 2026, and the review was published on doppiozero.com on August 30, 2026, written by Giuseppe Lupo and Anita Romanello.