Laura Orvieto

Laura Orvieto, born Laura Cantoni (March 7, 1876 - May 9, 1955), was a Jewish Italian writer.

Biography

Laura Cantoni was born in Milan, daughter of Achille Cantoni and Maria Cantoni, but moved to Florence in 1899, after marrying poet Angiolo Orvieto.

She collaborated with the magazine "Il Marzocco" (1896 - 1933) and published several books for children, some of which translated in numerous languages. The most famous of them is Storie della storia del mondo ("Stories of World History"). She was a friend of the Italian writer Amelia Pincherle Rosselli (the mother of the brothers Carlo and Nello Rosselli, assassinated by La Cagoule, secret services of the Fascist regime, and grandmother of the poet Amelia Rosselli), and of the actress Eleonora Duse.

Selected works

• Leo e Lia (1909, short story collection)
• Storie della storia del mondo. Greche e barbare (1911)
• Principesse, bambini e bestie (1914)
• Storie della storia del mondo. Il natale di Roma (1928)
• Storie della storia del mondo. La forza di Roma (1933)
• Storie di bambini molto antichi (1937)
• Storia di Angiolo e Laura (1939, ed. in 2001)
• Viaggio meraviglioso di Gianni nel paese delle parole (1930, ed. in 2007)