The Embrace Between Cinema and Literature with Nuovo Armenia

The screen of Nuovo Armenia has lit up once again, renewing that special encounter between the light of the projector and the ink of the LiLi Community books. Under the stars of a beautiful summer sky, the screening of the film Once Upon a Time in Gaza created a truly unique atmosphere, difficult to replicate elsewhere.

We are increasingly convinced that something magical happens at Nuovo Armenia when the power of cinema unites with the expressive freedom of literature. This synergy is made possible above all thanks to the determination and courage of the volunteers and staff of Nuovo Armenia, the true driving force of a project capable of creating culture and inclusion. In our own small way, we are immensely happy to be part of this shared dream!

The Voices of Contemporary Arabic Literature

This second evening was also an opportunity to refresh the offerings at our bookstand, where a new selection of Arabic language books for adults made its debut, characterized by high literary quality.

Among the volumes present, we remember the classic of Palestinian literature Men in the Sun (Rijal fi ash-shams) by Ghassan Kanafani, The Bookseller’s Notebooks (Dafatir al-warraq) by the award winning Jordanian author Jalal Bargas, and the extraordinary A Mask, the Color of the Sky (Qina’ balun as-sama’) by the Palestinian writer Basim Khandaqji.

To discover the details of these and other titles, you can explore the section dedicated to Arabic literature on our website.

Cinema as Resistance and Irony: Once Upon a Time in Gaza

The visual heart of the evening was the film Once Upon a Time in Gaza, set in Palestine in 2007. The story follows Yahya, a young man trying to get by in a closed city full of contradictions, working at a falafel stand together with Osama, a charismatic man who dreams of a different life.

Between friendship, small business, and increasingly strong daily pressures, their lives take an unexpected turn when, years later, an action film shot in Gaza brings back wounds that have never closed, transforming Yahya into a symbol greater than himself. The result is a story that uses genre cinema to reflect on dreams, identity, and resistance.

Toward the Next Appointment Under the Stars

The cultural summer in the garden of Nuovo Armenia does not end here. We await you with our bookstand on Thursday, July 30, for the projection of the film The Voice of Hind Rajab: another important opportunity to look beyond borders and let ourselves be moved by necessary narratives.

A special thank you goes to Nuovo Armenia for hosting us once again, and to all the curious people who stopped by our stand to leaf through the books, to chat, or even just to share a smile.