The activity of Colonnese Editore, a historic publishing brand now part of Mazzei Librerie S.r.l., began in 2016. At that time, along with the historic bookstore in the heart of Naples, it was acquired and relaunched with a new cultural project that brought life, energy, and new readers back to a landmark of Neapolitan culture.
Under new management, the publishing house regained national distribution, returning great classics to bookstores—from Dickens’ Impressioni di Napoli and Mantegazza’s L’arte di essere felici to Renato De Falco’s Alfabeto Napoletano—while introducing new series and titles that blend tradition and modernity. Notable publications include Henry Weedall’s Il Miracolo di San Gennaro, the Bussole series dedicated to historical-artistic guides (including the official guide to the Reggia di Caserta, translated into five languages), and Il Principe Poeta, an anthology of poems by Totò, which has become one of the catalog's most beloved volumes.
In the following years, the house established international collaborations, such as with Gallimard for Jean-Noël Schifano’s Cronache Napoletane and Il Gallo di Renato Caccioppoli, as well as with Spanish publisher José Vicente Quirante Rives (Ombra e Rivoluzione) and critic Renato Miracco (Oscar Wilde. Il sogno italiano).
Alongside foreign authors, Colonnese has given a voice to key figures of the Neapolitan and Italian cultural scene, including Peppe Lanzetta with his Elogi dedicated to Maradona and Pino Daniele, the poetic verses of Luciano Stella, and Marco Zurzolo with I napoletani non sono romantici and ’O fischio ca nun fa paura. Since 2023, two new series have enriched the catalog: Passaggi, dedicated to high-intensity essays and novellas like Aldo Masullo’s L'arte di essere felici or the successful critical essay Lo Stronzo Geniale by Raffaella R. Ferré; and the young but already cherished Parthenope series, which offers paperback editions of great classics on Naples and Southern Italy, ranging from Matilde Serao and Axel Munthe to Roberto Bracco and Benedetto Croce.
2024 has been a year of particular vitality, featuring new releases from authors such as Vittorio Del Tufo (Il caso Virgilio), Stella Cervasio (Gattofollia), Roberto De Simone (Dell’Arco di Giovanna D’Arco), and Aurelio Musi (Controrinascimento malinconico).
Today, Colonnese Editore continues to combine memory, innovation, and literature, passionately pursuing an editorial vision that portrays Naples as a truly European city: cultured, vibrant, and constantly evolving.