Ukrainian Fiction

Two years after my mother died, my father fell in love with a glamorous blonde Ukrainian divorcee. He was 84 and she was 36. She exploded into our lives like a fluffy pink grenade, churning up the murky water, bringing to the surface sludge of sloughed-off memories, giving the family ghosts a kick up the backside. Sisters Vera and Nadezhda must put aside a lifetime of feuding to save their émigré engineer father from voluptuous gold-digger Valentina.

Called “the most influential Ukrainian book for the 15 years of independence", Field Work in Ukrainian Sex by Oksana Zabuzhko is the tale of one woman’s personal revolt. It provoked the top literary scandal of the decade. The novel was first published in Ukraine in 1996, unleashing a storm of controversy and propelling the author to national fame. It topped the bestseller list in Ukraine for more than ten years, making it the most successful Ukrainian-language book of the '90s in every regard.

In 1913, a Russian ballet incited a riot in Paris at the new Théâtre de Champs-Elysées. A century later, thousands of Ukrainian citizens gathered at Independence Square (Euromaidan) in Kyiv to protest then-President Yanukovych's failure to sign a referendum with the European Union, opting instead to forge a closer alliance with Russia. The peaceful protests turned violent when military police shot into the crowd, killing over a hundred civilians. This novel follows four individuals over the course of a the Ukrainian winter, as their lives are changed forever by the protests.

Strange things are afoot in the city of Lviv, western Ukraine. Seagulls are circling and the air smells salty, though Lviv is a long way from the sea. A ragtag group gathers round a mysterious grave in Lychakiv Cemetery - among them an ex-KGB officer and an ageing hippy he used to spy on. Before long, Captain Ryabtsev and Alik Olisevych are teaming up to discover the source of the "anomalies". Meanwhile, Taras ­- who makes a living driving kidney-stone patients over cobblestones in his Opel Vectra - is courting Darka, who works nights at a bureau de change despite being allergic to money.

A Word Is Not A Sparrow is a diverse anthology of stories set amid Russian repression through the centuries; personal narrator testimony about the impact in America of immigrant grandparents from Ukraine and elsewhere; powerful fables and allegories that deliver universal messages about displacement, migration, and human connection; and classic Cossack folk tales that are a touchstone of Ukrainian culture. Listen as we let these words fly out around the world.

Thirteen-year-old Matthew is miserable. His journalist dad is stuck overseas indefinitely, and his mom has moved in his one-hundred-year-old great-grandmother to ride out the pandemic, adding to his stress and isolation. But when Matthew finds a tattered black-and-white photo in his great-grandmother’s belongings, he discovers a clue to a hidden chapter of her past, one that will lead to a life-shattering family secret.

Про пригоди дівчинки Аліси, яка потрапила до Дивокраю, люблять читати не лише діти, а й дорослі. Кумедні, часом дивакуваті герої, вигадливі ситуації, цікаві діалоги роблять казку яскравою, художньо насиченою — такою, що залишається в пам’яті назавжди. Завдяки новому перекладу казки українською мовою, позначеному іскристою фантазією, а також чудовому художньому оформленню це подарункове видання стане справжнім скарбом вашої домашньої бібліотеки.

Тигролови Івана Багряного — історично-пригодницький роман, ідейно-тематичне коло якого — тема трагедії України в тоталітарному режимі. У центрі твору — доля молодого українського інтелігента Григорія Многогрішного. Твір є обов'язковою частиною шкільної програми. Іван Багряний — український письменник, автор романів Сад Гетсиманський, Людина біжить над прірвою та ін., низки повістей та оповідань.

The Ukraine is a collection of twenty-six pieces that deliberately blur the line between nonfiction and fiction, conjuring the essence of a beloved country through its tastes, smells, and sounds, its small towns and big cities, its people and their compassion and indifference, simplicities and complications. The Ukraine conveys to listeners a place that Chapeye and his countrymen are currently fighting for with their lives. The book features a preface by the author, which he composed on his phone from the front lines.

Валер'ян Підмогильний створив модерний роман, в якому, на відміну від традиційної селянської і соціальної тематики, акцент перенесений на урбаністичну проблематику, порушені філософські питання буття й аналізована психіка героїв, а конфлікт розгортається між людьми з різними світоглядами. Місто — перший урбаністичний роман в українській літературі, з новими героями, проблематикою та манерою оповіді.

Kiev. 1942. Larissa is a renowned embroiderer, surviving in occupied Ukraine as a seamstress in her ruin of a workshop. When an SS officer arrives to order a traditionally embroidered Ukrainian shirt, Larissa uses the opportunity to create a piece of art from her handiwork. Threading together the history and the horrors between the two enemies, she finds a way to express her defiance toward the Nazis and the local collaborators. But at what price? Prepare yourself for an unforgettable journey behind the Second World War’s eastern front.

У цій унікальній книжці, написаній видатним українським ученим, письменником і політичним діячем Михайлом Грушевським, стисло і доступно, надзвичайно колоритною мовою розповідається про невмирущі сторінки нашого героїчного минулого, про споконвічні устремління українського народу до волі та справедливості, про тернистий шлях до незалежності. Надзвичайно переймаючись тим, що українські землі постійно ділять між собою сильніші держави, автор закликає українців єднатися і окреслює напрямки розвитку різних сфер життя в Україні.

Полінці рочків — «без пальчика долоня»: саме виповнилося чотири. Вона гостює у дбайливої бабусі й дідуся-витівника, який, попри свій вік, страшенно любить бешкетувати, улаштовувати капості, пригоди й навіть організовувати пошуки скарбів. Завдяки дідусевим вигадкам дівчинка не тільки полюбить їсти кашу й подружиться із сусідським хлопчиком Миколою, а й навчиться читати й рахувати, дістане купу подряпин і подарунок від зубної феї, вирушить у похід і дізнається чимало нового про довколишній світ.

Women’s prose writing has exploded on the literary scene in Ukraine just prior to and following Ukrainian independence in 1991. Over the past two decades scores of fascinating new women authors have emerged. These authors write in a wide variety of styles and genres including short stories, novels, essays, and new journalism. In the collection you will find: realism, magical realism, surrealism, the fantastic, deeply intellectual writing, newly discovered feminist perspectives, philosophical prose, psychological mysteries, confessional prose, and much more.

When eight-year-old Cappy discovers a whale swimming outside of his bedroom window, it's fair to say he's quite surprised. Given how long he's spent in hospital, Cappy has had plenty of time to read a LOT of books on animals, and he's never heard of a whale that can fly. What with his leukaemia, Cappy's used to not being allowed to do things he wants—like eating sweets, playing with dogs, or roaming too far from his protective family—so he's delighted when the amazing whale not only speaks to him, but asks him to join him for a ride in the sky.

Precursor by Vasyl Shevchuk tells the story of Hryhoriy Skovoroda, Ukraine’s “wandering philosopher” of the 18th century. A defender of justice and freedom, Skovoroda lived an unsettled life, challenging social and religious hypocrisy in his search for truth. Shevchuk’s novel immerses listeners in the Russian Empire's oppressive atmosphere, following Skovoroda’s travels and ideological battles against corruption and hypocrisy.

Embark on a captivating journey spanning continents and generations in "Crossing Borders and Generations: One Man's Journey to Search for His Ukrainian, Greek, and Bulgarian Roots." This spellbinding historical fiction novel follows the intertwining lives of Grandpa George and his grandson Alex, traversing centuries and continents in a quest for identity, resilience, and the enduring power of heritage.

Swept up in a whirlwind courtship, Katja and Wasyl begin life anew in a Ukrainian settlement of Western Canada. The dusty Canadian prairies promise hope and independence, but when war breaks out between the old world and the new, their newfound stability is shattered. Rumors of the internment of Ukrainian-Canadians haunt the new settlers. Would the country they love betray them like this? An incident throws the couple and their young children into turmoil, and Katja faces the prospect of enduring a Canadian winter without Wasyl by her side.

There are some crimes you can't sweep under the carpet.... Lena Szarka, a Hungarian cleaner working in London, knows all too well about cleaning up other people's messes. When her friend Timea disappears, she suspects one of her clients is to blame. However, the police don't share her suspicions, and it is left to Lena to turn sleuth and find her friend.

The novel climaxes during the 2014 Euromaidan "Revolution of Dignity," where Yuri and his band of savvy saboteurs fight oligarchs, the government, a cabal of mobsters and moguls, and stealth Russian forces, as they strive to save themselves and the battered country they believe in.