Book Club in inglese: appuntamento al prossimo anno!
Si è conclusa anche quest’anno l’attività del Book Club in lingua inglese, celebrata con il tradizionale picnic letterario al Parco Moretti. L’incontro finale, trascorso all’aria aperta tra libri, conversazioni e momenti conviviali, è stato l’occasione per ripercorrere insieme le letture affrontate durante l’anno, condividere impressioni ed emozioni e salutarsi prima della pausa estiva.
Nel corso dell’anno i libri ci hanno accompagnato in epoche, luoghi e realtà molto diverse tra loro, permettendoci di conoscere personaggi indimenticabili e di riflettere su temi sempre attuali.
Il nostro viaggio è iniziato negli Stati Uniti degli anni Cinquanta con "The Dead Poets Society", seguendo le emozioni, i sogni e le sfide dei suoi giovani protagonisti. Ci siamo poi spostati in Inghilterra con "Refugee Boy" di Benjamin Zephaniah, un romanzo che ci ha fatto conoscere da vicino le difficoltà, le speranze e il coraggio di chi è costretto a lasciare il proprio Paese.
Con "About a Boy" abbiamo alternato sorrisi e riflessioni, apprezzando l’ironia e la profondità con cui il romanzo affronta temi legati alla crescita, alle relazioni e all’identità. Non poteva mancare, inoltre, un classico del giallo: "The ABC Murders" di Agatha Christie, che ci ha coinvolti in una delle più celebri indagini di Hercule Poirot.
Il percorso si è concluso con la lettura della traduzione inglese del romanzo "La mia casa" altrove di Federica Marzi, magistralmente tradotto da Jim Hicks. Grazie alla preziosa collaborazione con Bottega Errante Edizioni, abbiamo avuto l’opportunità di organizzare un incontro online con il traduttore. È stata un’esperienza particolarmente significativa: i partecipanti del Book Club hanno preparato e condotto l’intervista, ponendo domande attente e stimolanti che hanno permesso di approfondire il complesso e affascinante lavoro della traduzione letteraria e di comprendere meglio come un testo possa trovare nuova vita in un’altra lingua.
Un altro capitolo del nostro Book Club si chiude, ma la passione per la lettura continua. Arrivederci al prossimo anno e buone letture estive a tutti!
Di seguito, alcuni commenti e riflessioni delle partecipanti:
May 22nd, 2026 marks the conclusion of the Book Club experience for this year. To tell the truth, the end is only a physical one: there won’t be any more afternoon meetings in the Debate Lab for this school year, sitting with a warm cup of tea and reflections to share. However, this FSL experience has taught me lifelong lessons: the ability to intervene and express myself in a foreign language and in a real conversation, the different meanings a text can assume based on the reader, and the importance of listening. It has been a chance to meet other students keen on reading but also to dig deeper into the novels I already knew (for instance, discussing “About a boy”, which I had already read, made me rethink the opinions I had on a character due to a comment another student made). During these months, we covered a wide variety of genres, authors, and time periods, ranging from “Dead Poets Society” to Agatha Christie, while discussing themes such as adolescence and foreignness. Thanks to the Book Club, I’ve had the chance to enrich both my literary knowledge and comprehension, as well as my human connections.
Maristella 3CL
When I joined the Book Club I was already an avid reader: reading was, and still is something I hold dear to my heart. The club meetings were held in a classroom at school, in a setting that allowed us to work comfortably together. During each meeting we discussed the book we had read, with the aid of prompts and questions, provided to us by the professors. Whenever we deemed the work finished, we collectively agreed on a new book and date. This club gave me the opportunity to cut out the time for reading I was obsessively scared of losing during my fifth year in high school; it gave me the chance to converse in english and learn from my mistakes. Of the many books we read I feel that I really enjoyed reading the first one, which was “Dead Poets Society” by N.H. Kleinbaum . There's a scene, both in the book and in the movie, in which Mr. Keating tells his students “We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race.” and that has deeply stuck with me throughout the remainder of the meetings. In a way these words have made me read books from an entirely different perspective, I now find it incredibly endearing that humans use words like threads they get to weave into shrouds, and even more so that every single person reading it will find their own personal meaning. Every book is born from the same curious wonder with which children stare at the sun.
Angela 5AU
For me, reading has always been a favorite habit, but it was usually something I did entirely on my own. When I joined the project work with Associazione Culturale Bottega Errante I was simply looking for a nice environment to share that interest with others. Looking back at our Diario di Bordo over the past few months, I’m really glad I took part. What I enjoyed most about the club was the relaxed, welcoming atmosphere. It wasn’t a strict academic environment; instead it felt like a comfortable space where everyone could speak honestly. We read a pretty wide variety of books: starting with "Dead Poets Society" (my favourite book) last year, moving through "About a Boy" and Agatha Christie’s "The ABC Murders", and eventually focusing on "La Mia Casa Altrove". We all brought completely different opinions to the table. It was genuinely interesting to see how two people could read the exact same chapter and walk away with entirely different impressions. Meeting the people behind the texts was also a great experience. Getting to prepare questions for an online interview with translator Jim Hicks, and later meeting author Federica Marzi in person, added a really cool perspective to how we looked at the books. We ended our sessions recently with a casual picnic at Parco Moretti to chat about our own independent reading, which perfectly captured the friendly, easygoing nature of the group. If you already love reading and are thinking about joining, I highly recommend it. You don’t need to be an expert critic; it’s just a great way to meet nice people and talk about good books without any pressure.
Linda 3CL