The latest addition to my website is Vasyl Shevchuk‘s Побратими, або Пригоди двох запорожців на суходолі, в морі та під водою (Blood Brothers). This novel is set in the seventeenth century and tells of the Zaporozhian Cossacks attempt to free themselves from the Poles as well as from the Tatars and Turks. Our hero is … Read more
The latest addition to my website is Mykhailo Kotsyubynsky‘s Тіні забутих предків (Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors). This is one of the great Ukrainian classics, using the Romeo and Juliet theme. The family of Ivan (the Romeo) is feuding with the family of Marichka (the Juliet). When a fight breaks out Ivan’s father is attacked and … Read more
The latest addition to my website is Igor Kaczurowsky‘s Шлях невідомого (Because Deserters Are Immortal). The book is set in Ukraine in late 1941 when the Germans are invading the Soviet Union. Our hero is Serhiy Remez who is not a keen supporter of the Soviet Union as most of his family has been murdered … Read more
The latest addition to my website is Andriy Lyubka‘s Карбід (Carbide). This is a very funny novel whose hero is the naive, drunken idealist Mykhailo ‘Tys’ Chvak who lives in the fictitious Ukrainian town of Vedmediv, close to the Hungarian border. Tys comes up with an idea of digging a tunnel between Vedmediv and Hungary … Read more
The latest addition to my website is Andrey Kurkov‘s Садовник из Очакова (The Gardener from Ochakov). Igor lives alone with his mother but he does not work. His mother takes in Stepan as a gardener and Igor is able to find out that Stepan had some connection with the town of Ochakov. The pair go … Read more
The latest addition to my website is Oleg Shynkarenko‘s Кагарлик (Kaharlyk). the book was originally on Facebook before being published as a book. It tells of the aftermath of the Russian invasion of Ukraine (written before the recent illegal invasion) and is set sometime (possibly seventy years) in the future. Ukraine is now substantially depopulated … Read more
The latest addition to my website is Lyubko Deresh‘s Культ [Cult]. The book was published when Deresh was eighteen and it is clearly a young man’s book. Our hero is Yurko Banzai. He is a trainee biology teacher and is sent to a strange and remote college to teach biology. The director is interested only … Read more
The latest addition to my website is Serhiy Zhadan‘s Інтернат (The Orphanage).It is set in the Ukraine-Russia border area, after the illegal Russian takeover of Crimea but before the illegal invasion. However, there is considerable turmoil as the Russians are aiding the separatists to move into Ukraine. Pasha is a teacher whose nephew, Sasha, (father … Read more
The latest addition to my website is Maryna and Serhiy Dyachenko‘s Vita Nostra (Vita Nostra). This is a decidedly strange book as we follow the story of Sasha, a sixteen year old. While on holiday with her mother, she is persuaded by a strange man to perform seemingly pointless tasks. Later she is persuaded by … Read more
The latest addition to my website is Yuriy Vynnychuk‘s Танґо смерті (Tango of Death). This is a very complex novel, set mainly in Lviv. It is told in alternating chapters. The first set tells the story of four boys/men whose fathers were killedby the Russian force of Grigory Kotovsky, a professional bandit and vicious thug. … Read more