Echoes of a Fallen Kingdom
Forgotten tales verge on reawakening in this collection of fourteen original poems. Rhythmic, gem-like language recovers the soul of a lost kingdom and its heroic sons and daughters, whose trials of betrayal have exceeded all bounds.
Editions: English (original).
Letter to the Reader
After two years of the unimaginable, they call us survivors—as if we didn’t bleed on the streets, as if our bodies weren’t torn and devoured by stray dogs, as if we didn’t dissolve beneath ruins and ashes. And yet now, we are expected to celebrate simply for getting out of this hell alive. “Alive” will never be the word describing what we are. What truly defines us is neither death nor life, but a suspension in a vacuum space in between.…
I used to write in my journal before the war, and capture the colors of the innocent world I lived in. I never imagined that the very same world could reveal a face only born of nightmares. My inner voice demanded release after what I’ve experienced, so I returned to my journal, but this time embracing darkness, writing down what I felt, what I suffered, and telling our story from my perspective, for I have always seen the world from a different angle.
What you hold in your hands is deeply related to the Palestinian narrative, embracing its scars, laments, and suffering while being woven together with myth, darkness, and light. It is not the legendary light found in fairy tales, but a light that shines from each weary soul living among the flames.
I hope this zine will be more than a collection of poetry for you. Let it be a transformation, a turning point, a path toward fostering awareness and empathy for the Palestinian cause.
This Palestinian lady, who bloomed in this scorched land and lived under the crimson sky of Gaza, chose to write so that her words might survive if she did not. Yet somehow, she made it out—surrounded by her charred coffin, barely breathing, and still called “alive.”
Sample Text and Illustrations
About the Author
Farah Elbahnasawi is a poet, voice-over artist, storyteller, and translator from Gaza. She graduated with distinction in English Literature from the Islamic University of Gaza and now works there as a teaching assistant. Farah has collaborated on international film projects and also works as a simultaneous interpreter with the Language for Justice community. Her work has appeared on several platforms, including Opol-space, Baladi Magazine, and Voices from Gaza, and a selection of her poems has been translated into Spanish in the literary platform Revista Kamesta.
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