Friday 24 April, 4.30pm at ICI London
Book Club Teenagers with Ernestina Meloni #1
Ribelli Resistenza Rock’n’Roll by Marco Ponti
ICI London and SIAL.courses present The Book Club for Teenagers. A project that aims to engage young people aged 11 to 18 and invite them to discover the pleasure of literature. During each meeting, the young participants will have the opportunity to discuss the book with the author or with an expert in the field. Reading is an intimate and educational experience that can only be truly appreciated by nurturing it.
First appointment for 2026 is with the book Ribelli Resistenza Rock’n’Roll by Marco Ponti
In Italian
“I want to be one of them, a partisan,” the boy says, announcing it while looking straight into his sister’s eyes, speaking loudly so that even the hills, the vineyards, the clouds can hear him. So that the whole world can hear him.”
A novel that brings the history of the Resistance closer to the gaze and sensitivity of today’s young people, using rock music as a common language. With a lively and direct tone, it connects difficult choices, friendships and small yet great acts of courage, showing how the idea of “rebellion” runs through different eras: yesterday against oppression, today against indifference, prejudice and easy shortcuts. Music becomes both soundtrack and metaphor: rhythm, volume, solos and pauses help narrate emotions and crucial turning points, turning memory into a concrete experience rather than a history lesson. The chapters flow like tracks on a playlist: intimate moments alternate with more adrenaline-filled scenes, lightness with more intense pages, keeping young readers hooked without ever trivialising the content. The result is an invitation to make choices, to take a stand, to understand that freedom and responsibility are living words. Designed for girls and boys, it is also a book well suited to shared reading at school or in the family, as it offers many opportunities for dialogue across generations.
Book your place HERE
Marco Ponti is an Italian film director, screenwriter, and author. He is best known for directing the 2001 cult film Santa Maradona, which won two David di Donatello awards, including Best New Director.
He co-authored Alice resta a casa (with Manlio Castagna), which won the Watty 2020 award for best Young Adult story on Wattpad Italy, and R – Ribelli, rivoluzione e rock ‘n’ roll with Christian Hill.
The tutor – Ernestina Meloni Graduated in Modern Languages from the University of Cagliari and with a Master’s in Applied Linguistics from Birkbeck College, University of London, Ernestina has been teaching Italian language in Great Britain for about thirty years, between Oxford and London. She currently teaches at the Lycée Français “Charles de Gaulle” in London and is involved in teacher training. She is an active member of British and international organisations, including ECIS (European Council of International Schools). In 2004 she won The European Language Award and received a recognition from the Italian Embassy for having created a model of language teaching through movement and dance. In the same year she was awarded the honour of Cavaliere (Knight) of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (OMRI). In 2005 she received an award from the University of Chicago, the Best Teaching Award, for the high quality of her teaching. Ernestina collaborates with the Cambridge Examinations board as a Moderator for national Italian language exams in the UK and continues to promote Italian language and culture in the UK by organising high-level performances and events. Ernestina is also a trustee of La Scuola Italiana a Londra, with primary responsibility for coordinating bilingualism within the curriculum.