Founder connections
- Brunello CucinelliFirst book he recalls reading alone from beginning to endIn the May 2026 FAZ interview, Cucinelli identifies Leopardi’s Canti as the first book he read entirely on his own. His original language, printing and edition are not identified by the source.Source
Summary
Giacomo Leopardi’s Canti gathers poems he revised and rearranged across his life. The collection moves among personal elegy, landscapes, public questions, philosophical satire and reflections on human hopes. Its changes of tone are part of the work, rather than a single continuous story.
The poems bring classical allusions together with a spare and questioning voice. This English edition uses Jonathan Galassi’s translation and introduction to present the variety within a collection that Leopardi treated as a home for his ideas and feelings.
Why read it Our view
For founders seeking a wider language for doubt, longing and change, read these poems slowly and attend to their changing voices. Consider how shifts between private feeling and public questions alter their meaning.