Deborah Parker

Deborah Parker is Professor of Italian at the University of Virginia. She has written books on Dante, and art and literature in the Italian Renaissance, and co-authored books on film criticism in the DVD era, the popularity of Dante's Inferno, and sycophancy. She's an avid reader, especially of 19th century novels and Dante. Deborah is the recipient of a number of grants from the the NEH, Villa I Tatti—the Harvard Center for Italian Studies, Folger Shakespeare Library, and has been a frequent Visiting Scholar at the American Academy in Rome. Her most recent book, Becoming Belle da Costa Greene: A Visionary Librarian Through Her Letters explores how a Black woman passing as white navigated the highest levels of New York society, became a celebrity librarian, and helped found a magnificent public institution. Michael Dirda, Pulitizer prize winning columnist for the Washington Post's Book World, listed it among his recommendations for holiday. Harvard University Press listed Becoming Belle da Costa Greene among its best books of 2024. Deborah's talks on Greene can be found on YouTube.