💡 In Wrong Winds, Palestinian-American poet and activist Ahmad Almallah stands before a seemingly impossible task: how do you write poetry while the world collapses around you? In his third poetic work, published in 2025, these poems emerge as an intense literary and human document written in the midst of the ongoing genocide in the Gaza Strip. Through them, Almallah poses harsh questions about the utility of poetry in times of war, the struggle of identity, and the inadequacy of language to comprehend tragedy.

The primary theme of the collection centers on linguistic helplessness in the face of horrific destruction. Almallah refuses to reduce the lives lost in Gaza to mere statistics, exploring the space between the screams and pleas of the victims and the absolute silence of the world. The poet also brilliantly depicts how ordinary things lose their usual meaning, leaving the poem as the final sanctuary for documenting a world turning to ash.

In just two weeks of grueling work and sleep deprivation, Almallah penned his poems amidst an atmosphere charged with both anger and grief. This tension is reflected in their composition, fragmented structure, and sharp rhythms, as well as the use of Arabic phrases. The poet does not aim to present palatable or easy texts here; instead, he chose a more difficult but realistic path, turning the poem into an entity that resists all forms of colonialism.

These are poems that cling to the heart and memory, leaving a painful mark as a witness to the absence of humanity and the shackling of justice in a world that turns a blind eye daily to ongoing genocide and imperialism. The severity of these poems stems from the severity of the reality they reflect — as the poet holds every word doubly responsible for his cause.

WHERE TO READ IT- You can find the paperback edition on Amazon. You can also get the ebook on Kobo.

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