In crescita a oltre 12.100 le presenze, 168 case editrici, più di 200 eventi con oltre 180 ospiti italiani e internazionali.
TESTO si consolida come appuntamento imperdibile per i lettori e i protagonisti del mondo dei libri e, per le case editrici il contesto ideale per presentare le novità e approfondire i loro titoli.
Il salone ribadisce il valore di una comunità della lettura viva e in continua evoluzione.
Nicolas Cunial wins the Florence round of the Poetry Slam, while the A Segno! awards go to Delphine Trouillard for Best Illustrated Book with 4 Sens dessus dessous / Sottosopra (Matita Edizioni) and Federico Antonini for Best Book Design with Medium hot (Timeo).
The fifth edition of TESTO [How a Book Comes to Life], held from February 27 to March 1, 2026, the event dedicated to contemporary publishing organized by Pitti Immagine in collaboration with Stazione Leopolda and conceived by Todo Modo, came to a close with tremendous enthusiasm and satisfaction among participants: publishers, readers, Italian and international authors, book clubs, booksellers, members of the press, and the many professionals who shape the world of books.
A leading reference point for contemporary publishing and the people behind it, TESTO once again transformed Stazione Leopolda into a vast bookstore, welcoming readers, industry professionals, and book lovers eager to discover what is new—and what is next—in publishing. This year's edition recorded a significant increase in attendance, with more than 12,100 visitors at Leopolda exploring the latest releases and curated selections presented by 168 publishing houses, including 31 exhibiting at TESTO for the first time. More than 180 authors and special guests took part in over 200 presentations, workshops, guided itineraries, literary walks, and special events, all drawing exceptional audiences in participation.
This fifth edition of TESTO marks an important milestone. Five years is enough time for a project like ours, dedicated to exploring how a book comes to life, to establish itself. There are still many challenges ahead, but this year we believe we succeeded in engaging even more deeply the many reading communities that have always been at the heart of our mission: libraries, bookstores, and both physical and digital book clubs. This work began months before the doors of Stazione Leopolda opened, allowing us to present the program through a nationwide network of booksellers whose reading groups became some of the most enthusiastic participants in this edition. Once again, our goal was to bring authors, both emerging and established, closer to their readers, to encourage reading as an act of freedom, discovery, and sharing, and to create opportunities for readers with common interests to connect. With more than 200 events featuring over 180 voices from across the publishing world, the program offered countless opportunities for dialogue and reflection on the many ways reading can be supported, nurtured, and reimagined. The same philosophy guided the redesign of the spaces at Stazione Leopolda, making them more welcoming and functional.
— Agostino Poletto, Corporate Strategy Director at Pitti Immagine
The theme of this fifth edition, ESTRO, ran throughout the entire program, serving as the guiding thread connecting the seven stations that trace the journey of a book, from manuscript to reader. The spirit of this edition was also reflected in the redesigned layout of Stazione Leopolda, conceived by Alessandro Moradei: larger tables for book displays, more fluid pathways, and new seating areas once again transformed the venue into a vast bookstore to explore, pause in, converse, and read. Particular attention was devoted to engaging reading communities through collaborations with more than forty partner bookstores across Italy and numerous book clubs, all of which took an active and enthusiastic part in the event, meeting authors and publishers and helping foster an even richer dialogue around books. Among the most appreciated new features was Officina Bazlen, a new space designed to encourage closer encounters and deepen the relationship between readers and publishers. Hosting a selection of international magazines, the TESTO Workshops, and Testofficina – Speed Date Manuscripts, it offered aspiring authors highly valued opportunities to meet with editors and publishing professionals. Through these experiences, TESTO once again affirmed its vocation to be not only a fair, but also a place for exchange, collaboration, and shared reflection on the present and future of books.
Many of the authors who took part at Stazione Leopolda captivated audiences throughout the event, including Kader Abdolah, Daria Bignardi, Alessandro Baricco, Mircea Cărtărescu, Dario Ferrari, Michele Mari, Carlos Magdalena, Andrew Miller, Arturo Pérez-Reverte, Paul B. Preciado, Yasmina Reza, and Antoine Volodine. Among the publishing highlights were contributions from Jacques Testard of Fitzcarraldo Editions and Julia Nannicelli of Gallimard.
Throughout the three days of TESTO at Leopolda, a vibrant editorial team of young journalists and graphic designers wrote, illustrated, and printed Testone!, the fair's daily magazine. The winners of A Segno!, the graphic design competition presented within the Il Segno station and dedicated to the year's most beautiful books, were Delphine Trouillard for Best Illustrated Book with 4 Sens dessus dessous/Sottosopra by Anna Puklus (Matita Edizioni), and Federico Antonini for Best Book Design with Medium Hot by Hito Steyerl (Timeo). This year's jury was chaired by Livia Satriano of @libribelli_books. Nicolas Cunial won the second edition of the Poetry Slam hosted by TESTO, curated by the Ripescati dalla Piena collective and valid for the 2025–2026 championship of LIPS (Italian Poetry Slam League), followed by Gabriel Arcy in second place and Andrea D'Anna in third.
Once again, Stazione Leopolda also welcomed the participation of the Tuscany Region, featuring a special space dedicated to the 80th anniversary of women's suffrage and the current situation in Iran through a project by La Toscana delle Donne, together with a tribute to Oliviero Toscani one year after his passing.
Radio Gridolini, the fair's own radio station, also returned to broadcast live from Stazione Leopolda. Through the irreverent interviews of its regular hosts, Edoardo Florio di Grazia and Pietro Torrigiani, it gave voice to many of this edition's protagonists. This year, Radio Gridolini also extended beyond the fairgrounds with live morning broadcasts produced in collaboration with CONTRORADIO.
Our sincere thanks go to all the publishers who took part in this edition and to their press offices for the invaluable work they did in helping shape the event program. We are equally grateful to our growing network of partners and to the institutions that collaborated with us, from the Gabinetto Vieusseux, which hosted a series of meetings and guided visits to the Bonsanti Archive, to the Centro per l'Arte Contemporanea Luigi Pecci in Prato, which brought to Stazione Leopolda a selection of works from the Lara-Vinca Masini archive and library, as well as the Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale di Firenze, Institut Français Italia and Librairie Française de Florence, the Kunsthistorisches Institut in Florenz, Cinema La Compagnia, and the cultural association La Nottola di Minerva ETS, among many others. Our thanks also go to everyone whose commitment, passion, and expertise helped make TESTO 2026 such a remarkable edition. And finally, a special thank you to our Station Masters, each serving as ambassador for one stage of the book's journey: Luca Briasco (The Manuscript), Andrea Gessner (The Book Jacket), Beatrice Masini (Translation), Giovanna Silva and Chiara Carpenter (The Sign), Leonardo G. Luccone (The Story), Maddalena Fossombroni and Pietro Torrigiani (The Bookstore), and Riccardo Ventrella (The Reader). Together with the Pitti Immagine team, they imagined and brought to life another wonderfully inspired edition of TESTO.
— Agostino Poletto, Direttore Strategie Corporate Pitti Immagine
Finally, the by-now legendary foosball tournament — the exciting showdown between publishing houses, refereed by Apuano — was won by the team of il Mulino and Carocci.
UniCredit is Main Partner of Pitti Immagine
Since 2020, UniCredit has stood alongside Pitti Immagine as Main Partner of its trade fairs, bringing ideas, projects, and resources with the aim of supporting the development of local territories and the productive and market excellence of Made in Italy.
TESTO is realized under the patronage and in collaboration with the Tuscany Region and the Municipality of Florence. It has the patronage of Rai Toscana and the media partnership of Rai Cultura.
COLLABORATIONS AND SPECIAL PARTICIPATIONS AT TESTO 2026
TESTO is the result of collective work, and many external organizations contributed to the success of the event. We are pleased to acknowledge them and thank each and every one.
Among the new additions: Casa Nuncas, the lounge sponsored by household care brand Nuncas, which hosted a series of encounters between authors and book clubs; an initiative by Fondazione Studio Marangoni, which photographed and printed portraits of readers with their newly purchased books; a talk dedicated to domestic space with architect and academic Luca Molinari; and an advance reading of select pages from Csaba Dalla Zorza's new novel, due out in May.
From the collaboration with Unicoop Firenze came the initiative LETTORI GIOVANI, LETTORI SMART!, offering membership discounts on tickets and free admission for 1,000 readers Under 30.
Also present: the Club Amici del Toscano, with tastings and pairings dedicated to the Toscano cigar; TESTO hosted KIDDO – Coltivare la lettura, with a workshop dedicated to promoting reading among children and young people; IED Firenze, which promoted the participation of artist and illustrator Luigi Serafini; the collaboration with the Master in Editoria cartacea e digitale at the University of Florence was confirmed, involving students in communications and event organization; the Club del Libro, a large online community of readers, also participated; Official Venue & Events Partner was The Social Hub Florence, which hosted the Silent Reading Party of Mystery, the opening party, and the Poetry Slam; Ditta Artigianale collaborated in creating the VIP Lounge and promoted the "suspended coffee" initiative for TESTO visitors; among the new participants, Laboratorio Zanzara, a social cooperative; and finally, promotional collaborations were established with Autolinee Toscane and Gruppo Menarini.
CREDITS
The exhibition design of TESTO is curated by Alessandro Moradei.
The artwork image is signed by Alessandro Gori. Laboratorium -|- M M X V I.
The communications campaign was conceived by Todo Modo Studio.
Special thanks to Violante Pallavicino, President of Fondazione LabOasis, for her support of this edition.
TESTO thanks Armor Lux, Flower Mountain, and Manifattura Ceccarelli for their contribution in dressing The Pitti Crew for this edition.
TECHNICAL SPONSORS
ABC Tipografia. A well-established company born in Florence in 1967 and now one of the leading references in the graphic arts, bringing to TESTO the expertise accumulated over the years in editorial printing, combined with cutting-edge technologies.
FEDRIGONI. Fedrigoni's story is one of production, with its roots in the ancient paper masters of Verona. Today, Fedrigoni is synonymous with excellence in specialty papers for graphics, art, publishing, printing, packaging, and security, as well as in the self-adhesive materials market.
Among the technical sponsors of this edition: Consorzio Maestranze Artigianali and Opinion Ciatti.
Special thanks to WTB Hotels, Hotel Indigo Florence by IHG, Starhotels Michelangelo, and Teatro Luxury Apartments Florence, who supported the hospitality program for the international authors invited to Florence
