Ercole Patti

Born in Catania into an upper-middle-class family and the nephew of writer Giuseppe Villaroel, Patti started working as a journalist at very young age, before graduating in law in 1925.
After practicing for a year in his father's firm, he decided to move to Rome to earn a living from journalism. There, after some sporadic collaborations, he was employed by the newspaper Gazzetta del Popolo, where he was a foreign correspondent in China, India and Japan, among other places.
Patti gained notoriety as a novelist in 1940 with Quartieri alti, a satirical portrait of Roman high classes. His novels are mainly set in Rome or in a sensual Sicily, which was, according to literary critic Carlo Bo, a sort of philosophical ideal for Patti.
He was active as a screenwriter since 1935, and a number of his novels were adapted into films.
In addition to novels, Patti published collections of short stories and two autobiographical works.

The Ercole Patti award was initiated in Italy to recognize those "...who, through art, are able to restore dignity to stories, give voice to pain, and shed light on what too often remains hidden."