Albert Russo who has published worldwide over 80 books of poetry, fiction and photography, in both English and French, his two mother tongues (Italian being his 'paternal' tongue; he also speaks Spanish and German and still has notions of Swahili), is the recipient of many awards, such as The New York Poetry Forum and Amelia (CA) Awards, The American Society of Writers Fiction Award, The British Diversity Short Story Award, The AZsacra international Poetry Award (Taj Mahal Review), the Books & Authors Award, several Writer’s Digest poetry and fiction Awards (winner and finalist), Aquillrelle Awards, the Prix Colette, and the Unicef First Prize in narrative poetry, for the protection of childhood, among others. Albert Russo’s work has been praised by James Baldwin, Pierre Emmanuel (French poet - Académie Française), Douglas Parmée (world-renowned translator - Cambridge University), Paul Willems (poet, playwright - Académie Royale de Belgique - and former curator of the Brussels Royal Museum of Art), Edmund White (writer and gay activist), and others. His work has been translated in a dozen languages. His award-winning African novels and his hilarious Zapinette series have appeared on both sides of the Atlantic, In India and in South Africa. He sat on the panel of the prestigious Neustadt Prize for Literature, which often leads to the Nobel Prize.