Cesare De Michelis International Award for Publishing 2027
Frankfurt, 28 September 2026 – The Frankfurter Buchmesse with Marsilio Editori and the De Michelis family are pleased to announce that the winner of the Cesare De Michelis International Award for Publishing 2027 is Sonia Draga, founder, president, and CEO of the eponymous publishing house in Katowice, Poland.
Promoted by Marsilio Editori as part of the Incroci di Civiltà literary festival, in collaboration with Ca’ Foscari University of Venice and in partnership with the Frankfurter Buchmesse, the Cesare De Michelis International Award for Publishing is annually given to publishers who have distinguished themselves on the international scene for the vitality and novelty of their publishing achievements.
The members of the jury are Teresa Cremisi (president), and the awarded publishers Naveen Kishore (Seagull Books, 2022), Michael Krüger (Carl Hanser Verlag, 2023), Fiona McCrae (Graywolf Press, 2024), Luiz Schwarcz (Companhia das Letras, 2025), Jonathan Galassi (Farrar Straus and Giroux, 2026) as well as Juergen Boos (director of Frankfurter Buchmesse), and Francesca Varotto (Marsilio Editori).
The event dedicated to the 2027 award-winning publisher takes place at the Inspiration Stage, 3.0/J34 – Frankfurter Buchmesse on Thursday 8 October at 4.00 pm.
In conversation with Sonia Draga will be Juergen Boos, director of Frankfurter Buchmesse
The award ceremony will be held in Venice during the literary festival Incroci di civiltà, March 10-13, 2027.
SONIA DRAGA founded the publishing house bearing her name in 2000. A translator, photographer, writer, and social activist, she was born and raised in Silesia. Wydawnictwo Sonia Draga is one of the most significant players in the Polish publishing market. Its catalogue includes contemporary fiction, biographies, reportage, and popular non-fiction. Named «the publisher with a sense for good books» she has also translated various works from English and is the author of several books illustrated with her own photographs. Since 2008, she has served on the board of the Polish Chamber of Books (Polska Izba Książki), being its President in 2020-2024, and from 2025 she is the President of the Federation of European Publishers. Sonia Draga was awarded the National Order of Merit by the President of the French Republic for her achievements in promoting French literature; additionally, her publishing house – which also manages two bookstores – received the Premio Nazionale per la Traduzione (National Translation Award) for its commitment to introducing Italian authors to the Polish public. The SONIA DRAGA Publishing Group releases a total of approximately 180 new titles and around 40 audiobooks annually.
Please find here(Öffnet neues Fenster) a press photo available for download.