According to sources, the poetry collection 'The Last Butterfly' was published by Albert Bonniers publishing house last autumn, marking her first translated work. Nima Hasan began publishing poems about her life on social media ten years ago, and her friends in the West helped spread them. She is an established literary voice in Gaza, having previously published two novels and a book in letter form in Arabic.
Nima Hasan also works as a social worker and says she wants to reach out to the world with stories about women like herself. She emphasizes that alongside the war, there is also beauty, music, art, love, and femininity, which one must also write about. In this week's Babel, Nima Hasan discusses the significance of poetry in a daily life of war, occupation, and famine.
Death is always present and every day we get to experience feels like a new life, because it means we have escaped death once again.
' Despite a declared ceasefire since October last year, bombs continue to fall over Gaza and people lack water and food. ' She adds, 'I want to retain my feelings as a woman and try not to lose them in the shadow of death, fear, hunger, and flight. ' The specific ceasefire declared in October last year and its parties remain unclear, as does the exact number of people in Gaza lacking water and food.
Poetry is for me a straw for survival, and a weapon.
I want to retain my feelings as a woman and try not to lose them in the shadow of death, fear, hunger, and flight. If I had given them up, I would not have survived and been able to talk to you now.