Although it is less known than his novels, Dessì’s non-fictional production entails moments of deep reflection inducing the reader, either Sardinian or not, to watch the island culture even from unconventional points of view.

His studies and considerations were published on magazines and newspapers; they were also collected into volumes, including the following:

• ‘Scoperta della Sardegna’, an anthology of passages selected by Dessì, drawn from works by travellers and intellectuals who wrote about Sardinia;
• ‘Un Pezzo di Luna’, published posthumous, gathering passages, short stories and essays dealing with the most varied themes, related to Sardinia and Sardinians, to the life and formation of Dessì as a man and as a writer.

Given the wide scope of such issues, it was hard to make a selection. Therefore, different and comprehensive topics have been highlighted, in order to give the reader-listener a great number of hints and invitation to reading Dessì’s works.

‘Scoperta della Sardegna’ is a collection of passages by writers and travellers who wrote about the Island of Sardinia, selected by Dessì according to precise logical criteria and with a lot of wit.

The introduction to this work, again by Dessì, reveals a few basic aspects of his thought, with special reference to the isolation, the powerful sense of belonging, the special concept of time pervading the Island and the uniqueness resulting from its history and, even more, from its very language.

Excerpt from Scoperta della Sardegna - (Intro, pp. X-XI – Milano, Il Polifilo, 1966)