Diary of an Invasion

 

Diary of an Invasion / Andrey Kurkov
Dallas, TX: Deep Vellum, 2023, c2022.
282 p. 

Kurkov is probably one of the best known Ukrainian writers today; he speaks to the West very effectively. This is the diary he kept as the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February, 2022. It covers all those moments familiar to those following this war; the unexpected bombs, the realization sinking in that this was real, the widespread displacement of Ukrainians to the western part of the country in the first few days and weeks, which Kurkov was part of as well. 

It's a writer's diary, so this is a polished and literary representation of the immediacy of the weeks after the invasion. He describes the people they meet, those they've left behind, their longing for their home and the small things they had to leave without. It has that immediacy of a diary, but also a literary arc of sorts. In that sense it's quite different from the non-literary diaries that I've read by Yeva Skalietska or Katya Tokar, which are quite raw. And different again from the diaries of Olena Stiazhkina, who is another literary voice but had been dealing with the realities of war since 2014, since she lived in the Donbas. 

I thought this book was well balanced, though, and a good one for Western readers as Kurkov communicates well and is known to many readers outside of Ukraine already. He does capture the response of a family who is both fairly well off and who are Russian speakers; this invasion is shocking to them on many levels. 

There is a second diary out now, and a third coming, and I believe it's important to keep hearing lived experiences of this war started by Russia, and not to look away. So I'll be reading those as well, and I'm sure that Kurkov will be able to continue to draw literary parallels and connect history to current events, as he does so well in this volume. 

How Good It Is I Have No Fear of Dying

 

How Good It Is I Have No Fear of Dying / Lara Marlowe
NY: Melville House, c2025.
312 p.

This is the story of Lieutenant Yulia Mykytenko, as told by journalist Lara Marlowe. Mykytenko served in the Ukrainian armed forces, but was no longer serving when the full-scale invasion began. She knew immediately that she had to return, and re-enlisted just days later. 

This is a powerful story of her work in the armed forces, as a commander of a unit. Those who think women are not part of the Ukrainian army are sadly mistaken; this book shows how many ways that women are working with and for the Ukrainian armed forces, for the defense of Ukraine. 

I was interested to read a bit of a different perspective here, from a women who had served both previously and in this current moment. She is a long-time serviceperson and has so much experience that she has comparisons to make and a deep understanding of patterns and decisions. So she doesn't fawn over the current government, she sees that there are things that will need changing within Ukrainian society, but after this current existential threat is over. 

She is no-nonsense as well, she just gets things done and avoids unnecessary drama. Her story is another perspective on what happened starting in February 2022, from a demographic I haven't heard directly from before. I thought that Lara Marlowe, a war journalist from the US and France, did a good job of getting Mykytenko's voice across and finding the right details to fill out this story. Illuminating and engaging, there are no dry reportage bits here. Just a very personal and thoughtful sketch of a woman's experience in wartime. 

Ukraine, War, Love: A Donetsk Diary

 

Ukraine, War, Love: A Donetsk Diary / Olena Stiazhkina
trans. from the Russian by Anne O. Fisher 
Cambridge, MA: HURI, c2024.
296 p.

This is a powerful book, one that anyone unaware of the realities of the ongoing war against Ukraine, happening since 2014, should read. It's written as a diary, addressed to an unnamed "you", a you which feels like the Russian world that she had lived in prior to this invasion. 

Stiazhkina is from Donetsk, and grew up speaking Russian, in the specific milieu of this underserved region. When Russians invaded in 2014, they were able to take advantage of the existing resentments against the Kyiv government, feelings that Donetsk and the region as a whole weren't being given the benefits that other regions were. And of course they took advantage of those who felt a longing for a simple Soviet past. 

But Stiazhkina is not only a diarist, she's a fantastic writer. So this book has strong imagery and descriptions of things as they are happening; the locals who get involved (generally men) and the so-called "locals" who come in to stir things up as their day job, getting on a bus to head back to Russia at the end of the day. She also writes about emotion, the varied responses to what's happening -- disbelief, the expectation that it will blow over, anger, fear, and the growing realization of an occupation. 

This is a vital read for understanding the beginnings of the current conflict, what people felt and experienced in the moment, and how things progressed. It gives readers a way to understand how one step can lead to many more, and how to recognize them when they are happening. It's such an important read, and one in which the style carries the reader as much as the content. Really good. 

A Sea of Gold

 

A Sea of Gold / Patricia Polacco
New York : Simon & Schuster, c2024
86 p.

I picked up this recent picture book in my library, for obvious reasons. It's about a family in Ukraine who are displaced by war, ending up in the US Midwest with relatives. 

But it's really not so simple. It focuses on three generations a family living in Cherinovska, Ukraine, who are sunflower farmers. The first generation marries and sets up a new farmstead; their daughter then marries and does the same. But their daughter ends up traumatized by war, only speaking again once she is in America with her great-uncle, once again planting sunflowers. 

This book started out just okay for me; the writing style is dense and expository, much like Polacco's other books, which I think are suited for older readers or for parent-child reading experiences. The illustrations are instantly recognizable as Polacco's work, with the loose linework and bright colours that are her hallmark. Really engaging, especially with all of the historical content around weddings and rituals - great opportunity to show off finery and colour. 

But what I didn't expect was the growing emotion in the story; by the last few pages I found myself unexpectedly moved. It was a powerful ending, to what is a pretty tragic story. After the men in their family do not return home when Russians bomb the nearby village, the three generations of women flee, eventually finding refuge with the grandmother's brother in America. But there is still their shared history to carry them through. 

I think this is a timely read, showing the lengthy history of war and trauma experienced by Ukrainians at the hands of Russians, happening now once more. But there is also the love of family, and hope that finishes off this story - based on Polacco's own Ukrainian heritage through her grandmother. Really touching. 

Twenty Two Letters from Ukraine

 

Twenty-Two Letters from Ukraine / Katya Tokar
trans. from the Ukrainian by D.B. Lewis
Scarborough, North Yorkshire, UK: Bryn Stowe Publications, c2023.
258 p.

Another unusual pick from me, this time it's non-fiction. This book is a series of letters written by a young Ukrainian woman over the course of the first few months of the full scale Russian invasion of Ukraine starting on February 24, 2022. 

The book is structured in letter format, written from her immediate experience or related slightly later from her journals. It has an immediacy that makes the mundane and everyday issues of war and internal displacement very real to the reader. Tokar shares the experiences of her family - her husband, mother, little sister, and small dog, who all live together, and leave their home in Eastern Ukraine to drive west, along with many others. The life of an internal refugee, trying to find a place to resettle even briefly, sounds very stressful. She's always on apps to try to locate hostels, shelters, etc. for the family to stay. There are a couple of places that they stay in only for a night or two, and a few more that are a few weeks at a stretch. 

Finally they decide that her mother and sister will cross to Poland, and then on to Ireland where they have a relative. But Katya is going to stay in Ukraine with her husband. 

I found it illuminating, the daily struggles of not having a home, job, or purpose. Trying to find safe places to stay, to feed the family, and worrying about money and their car. Not knowing what the future holds at all, or if she will ever be able to go back to being a preschool teacher, or have a permanent home again. The letters end after a year, when she and her husband move to Kyiv, first to stay with a relative and then finally finding their own apartment. 

She talks about her grief at being separated from her mother and sister, and worry about her husband in this precarious situation. It is an individual story, about one person, and this brings the scale of the war down to a very understandable event -- you can feel it. While the style is quite simple, there are some moments in which she talks about memory and having to leave the past behind where the writing is more powerful. This was a powerful read about real life experience, told by someone who isn't a writer but just wants to share the realities of life under war. 

Blossoming of a Ukrainian Canadian: Savella Stechishin

Blossoming of a Ukrainian Canadian: Savella Stechishin
by Natalie Ostryzniuk
Bloomington, IN: Trafford, c2009.
236 p.

I decided to read this biography, fortunately available through interlibrary loan, as part of my Ukrainian Canadian reading. Savella Stechishin Savella Stechishin is best known for her comprehensive cookbook Traditional Ukrainian Cookery (now very hard to find at a reasonable price!) But she was active in a lot of other areas as well, and this bio, written as a master's thesis, covers much of her life and work in Saskatchewan. 

As she was such a big part of the Ukrainian Canadian community, particularly in Saskatchewan, I was hoping I might find some mention of some of my relatives or people I knew in this. No such luck! Not a peep. That could be because she was solidly planted in the Ukrainian Orthodox tradition, and none of my family was religious at all. Nonetheless, this book was fascinating; her life was unusual and so busy. She immigrated to Canada at age 9 with her family, in 1913. And she was the first woman to graduate from the University of Saskatchewan, with a degree in home economics. She wanted to make life easier for women, so spent a lot of time travelling around the province teaching women better domestic skills to improve their lot. This is while she was married herself, with 3 children. Her husband Julian was rector of the Petro Mohyla Institute in Saskatoon, and a writer himself, but also did his share of childcare and more while she was working. 

She founded the Ukrainian Women's Association of Canada in 1926, and the Ukrainian Museum of Canada in 1936. Both are still running, nationwide. She travelled to women's conferences across the country, in the US and in Ukraine, meeting some of her more famous contemporaries. But she always stayed committed to the work she was doing in Saskatchewan. Savella Stechishin had a lot more to her than I'd known before reading this book - I'm so glad someone wrote about her while she was still around to interview. My degree was in Canadian History, but no mention of people like her back then. I'm happy to rectify that by reading history like this now. 

Food Was Her Country

Food Was Her Country / Marusya Bociurkiw
Qualicum Beach, BC: Caitlin Press, c2018.
176 p.

I read Bociurkiw's first memoir, Comfort Food for Breakups, a decade ago, and have intended to read this one ever since! But I think I read it at the right time, as I found this so powerful and engrossing when I picked it up a few weeks ago. 

Her essay in Unbound, which I recently reviewed, has a lot of crossover with this book -- some of the same material. If I hadn't read them coincidentally at the same time, I might not have realized! But it's wonderful writing so I didn't mind at all. 

Her writing is smooth and engaging, even as she talks about parents aging, family estrangement, issues of identity and sexuality, and difficult memories. She also talks about building new relationships both with her family and with chosen family, lots about food of course (she is an amazing food writer), and lots of fascinating background on being Ukrainian Canadian. She grew up in Western Canada but has lived in Toronto for a long time, so there is also that element that shapes her relationships.

There is a lot to take in here. There are many life events she shares, often using food as a connecting link. The main thread in this memoir is her relationship with her mother, and her mother's past -- both as a Ukrainian and as her specific role in their family. She and her mother communicate with food, and the writing here does not strain the metaphor at all, but makes it so beautiful. Bociurkiw's voice is gentle, honest, and grounded. You can tell she knows herself and is centred, even while ranging over her past.  

If you are interested in thoughtful, poetic examinations of family, or food, or the second or third generation immigrant experience, you will also love this. I was very taken with this one and would reread it in a flash. Very impressive style and substance, too. 

Ivan & Phoebe

 

Ivan & Phoebe / Oksana Lutsyshyna
trans. from the Ukrainian by Nina Murray
Dallas, TX: Deep Vellum, 2023, c2021.
425 p.

This is a very recent release that I was fortunate to find through my library. Nina Murray is one of my favourite translators from Ukrainian so I was happy to see that she had worked on this novel by Oksana Lutsyshyna, an author who is new to me. 

This book follows the experiences of Ivan and Phoebe - no surprise there, from the title. However, Ivan is much more the main character, with Phoebe only getting a chance to speak a few times. 

The story is set in the 90s, a tumultuous time in Ukraine. Ivan was a student at the time of the Revolution on Granite, also known as the "First Maidan". He joined the ranks and participated in the revolution, which had many students camped out on the Maidan in Kyiv, many on a hunger strike, protesting the political state of parliament. This is the heart of the story, with repercussions that shape Ivan's behaviour following. 

During the protest, Ivan is befriended by someone who turns out to be a government agent; the harassment and fear that follows drives Ivan away from Lviv and his university friends back to his hometown of Uzhgorod. He moves back in with his family, finds a job as an IT support person, and starts dating his boss' daughter. He also looks up his old school friends, many of whom are troubled and unsuccessful in life. 

The story melds the conversation about a free Ukraine and revolution/protest with the closer look at domestic life and the relations between the sexes. There are the same problems showing up in different ways between the political body and real bodies. Not only is there a lot of misogyny, there is also friction between women, like Phoebe and Ivan's mother, once Ivan and Phoebe get married and she moves into his home. 

Phoebe's voice comes out in poetic monologues between the narrative, just a few. She relates the way she's been verbally abused but it's not clear by whom - Ivan? Her mother-in-law? Her own parents? All of them? As a young woman when they were dating, Phoebe loved art and culture and wrote poetry. Ivan destroyed her work when they were married, but she holds on to her words, and eventually finds the strength to leave him. 

The ending is somewhat inconclusive - Ivan has decided to make a change and find his independence from the domestic round, from the expectations on a man of his class, and break away from the drunken fatalism that he was falling into. But what is he moving toward? There are some indications but it's not fully clear. 

In any case, the joy of the book is just in reading the daily round, of encountering all the characters and situations that Ivan is trying to make sense of. He's not a hero, but also not an anti-hero. Just a regular guy. The parts of the book set during the Revolution on Granite are very strong and memorable, but life is Uzhgorod shows the way that life can deflate from great moments into daily mundanity. I would have liked to have a little more from Phoebe in this book, to understand her role here a bit better. But the author does a good job of showing the internal fear and trauma that causes Ivan's behaviours, things he would never talk about or acknowledge. 

I became engrossed in this story and the characters. Through this story, not only do we encounter families and relationships but also the larger story of history and politics, and how they are all enmeshed. Very timely and compelling reading. 

You Don't Know What War Is

You Don't Know What War Is / Yeva Skalietska
NY: Union Square & Co, c2022
128 p.

This is a story of the experience of the ongoing Russian war in Ukraine from the viewpoint of a 12 year old girl. Any story told with the bare facts of daily experience, without benefit of hindsight, with a child's clear voice is compelling; this reminds me of Zlata's Diary or even Anne Frank's in some parts. 

Yeva Skalietka had just turned 12 when the conflict started in February of this year. The story begins on her 12th birthday in early February, in Kharkiv where she had lived with her grandmother since she was a young child. A few weeks after this delightful experience, bombs start falling. 

She reveals their first few weeks sheltering in a basement bomb shelter, and then with a friend of her grandmother's farther away from the centre of the attacks. But the attacks keep growing, and eventually they are able to take a train to Western Ukraine, and from there to a refugee centre in Poland. And then, after some effort, they find a way to get to Ireland. They now live in Dublin, where Yeva is attending school and settling in to a new life - the diary ends there and there is a hopeful note to it. 

Throughout, she talks about her schoolfriends from Ukraine; they have a classroom chat and keep in touch, sharing their experiences of bombings and the dangers they see, as well as joking around and keeping one another's spirits up. Their daily lives have suddenly changed utterly, but they try to keep some sense of normalcy among themselves. She also shares her artistic side - she loves painting and creating, and finds that these practices help her manage the anxiety of bombs and explosions. 

It's a straightforward diary, moving from the beginnings of war through all the logistical issues that led to them getting to Ireland, and her own experiences in a safe country. She describes the fractured awareness of life in a safe place while also knowing her friends are still under attack. It's an illuminating read, and one that will be accessible to younger readers as well as adults. Definitely one to look out for.