Now that Valletta has been officially recognised as the 2018 European Capital of Culture and that a new team has been appointed to prepare for it, I would like to renew my appeal that Maltese literature should definitely be included.

I have especially in mind those works written by Maltese writers in a European language that is other than Maltese. After all, these works are not only part of Maltese literature but also part of European literature and culture. They can be commemorated, celebrated, flaunted in so many ways: an exhibition with videos/recorded commentaries; lectures and poetry readings; the publication of an anthology of poems; reprints of long out of print works…

Care must be taken to put these writers in their proper historical context or perspective. We need to know why most writers wrote only in Italian at a certain period of our history, and why, later, other writers wrote in English or in more than one language. Those who wrote only in Maltese must not be forgotten, of course. Some of their works have already been translated into other European languages. Maybe more could be translated.

Some Maltese writers have had works published in prestigious foreign literary journals while some foreign writers have had works included in local periodicals.

I am sure that many visitors who come from European countries for the 2018 events will be not only interested but also pleasantly surprised to discover all this. While many of the young generation Maltese should also be interested.

Surely, both the University and the National Library should be able to produce something memorable for the occasion.