’Like Light in the Darkness’ – New German translations of Ukrainian literature + Books on Ukraine from German publishers

‘They belong to us, they are one of us and we want them in’ – Yuri Andrukhovych had been waiting...

‘They belong to us, they are one of us and we want them in’ – Yuri Andrukhovych had been waiting years to hear those words, which offered his country the prospect of EU membership. They were spoken in Brussels three days after Russia invaded Ukraine. ‘A deep sigh of relief – amidst the blaring sirens.’ Andrukhovych had been a voice crying out in the wilderness, warning at every opportunity of Russia’s expansionist ambitions. As the Sisyphus of European unity and cooperation, he called on political leaders not to ignore Ukraine’s plight. The Price of Our Freedom is a collection of essays written between 2014 (the year of the Euromaidan protests) and 2023.

Romana is a woman who compiles stories and collects memories: an archivist. She believes an unnamed soldier who returns from...

Romana is a woman who compiles stories and collects memories: an archivist. She believes an unnamed soldier who returns from the war in Donbass in 2014 with severe injuries is her missing husband Bogdan. He is too badly injured to be identified and too traumatised to remember. Romana tries to restore Bogdan’s memory and identity by telling a story. He once gave her a mysterious suitcase filled with photographs and documents, which becomes the starting point for a quest to rediscover their shared past. But perhaps Romana is just an unreliable narrator offering up a biography to an unknown soldier …

‘It was a spring day. Spots of sunshine played on the sides of houses and the white walls of St...

‘It was a spring day. Spots of sunshine played on the sides of houses and the white walls of St Sophia Cathedral.’ Since the start of the Russia–Ukraine war, artist and author Yevgenia Belorusets has been keeping a diary of events in Kyiv. She talks about her parents, the air raid shelters, the things she sees in the media and on the streets. Some are terrifying, but others are familiar and mundane, because everyday life goes on even in the most horrific of circumstances. In her writing and photography, Belorusets rejects the ubiquitous language of war. She opposes belligerent rhetoric with loving attentiveness, polarisation with human kindness.

In the last decade, Ukraine has emerged as a hotbed of contemporary creativity, showcasing impressive contributions in fields such as...

In the last decade, Ukraine has emerged as a hotbed of contemporary creativity, showcasing impressive contributions in fields such as interior design, fashion, architecture, photography and art. The young Ukrainian creatives blend traditional crafts, materials and aesthetics with a modern, cosmopolitan outlook. Ukraine Rising is a book that celebrates the best of contemporary Ukrainian culture through compelling photography and insightful writing. It showcases the work of top creatives and features expert essays that offer a glimpse into the vibrant people, projects and innovation the country has to offer. This collaboration with Ukrainian publisher Lucia Bondar is a testament to the creative spirit and energy of Ukrainians and a promise of a better future.

Helmut Böttiger has been to Chernivtsi three times in the last thirty years. Each of these trips was over a...

Helmut Böttiger has been to Chernivtsi three times in the last thirty years. Each of these trips was over a decade apart, and each time the city had changed: the first time, it was waking from the deep sleep of the Soviet years and still bore the scars of a brutal resettlement policy; the second time, it was one of the centres of the Orange Revolution; and most recently, it was part of a new Ukraine aware of its own distinctive identity and language, which was being forced to defend itself against a murderous incursion by the former occupiers.

What kind of letter would you write to people who live in peace and freedom and know nothing of day-to-day...

What kind of letter would you write to people who live in peace and freedom and know nothing of day-to-day life in war? Thirty-eight women aged 10 to 72 responded to this question by writing letters. Strong, powerful, succinct, uncompromising, filled with pain, they have been published in this book. The authors were photographed by three Ukrainian women. And the good news is: they’re all still alive. With an afterword by Nobel Peace laureate Oleksandra Matviichuk.

This bilingual German-Ukrainian picture book uses beautiful illustrations to tell the incredible story of the Ukrainian Ivan Kraft, formerly the...

This bilingual German-Ukrainian picture book uses beautiful illustrations to tell the incredible story of the Ukrainian Ivan Kraft, formerly the world’s strongest man. Even as a boy, the people in his village were already amazed by his courage and exceptional strength. As a young man, he joined the circus and travelled the world. He won numerous wrestling and weightlifting competitions. He thrilled audiences in circus rings all over the globe. During his years of travelling, he learned an incredible fourteen languages! Back in his native Ukraine, he opened a sports academy which supported young people and trained them to become successful athletes.

Caught between the Habsburg Empire and Russia, for most of its history Ukraine was denied the right to self-determination. In...

Caught between the Habsburg Empire and Russia, for most of its history Ukraine was denied the right to self-determination. In Germany, our understanding of that history was long dominated by myths and distortions, especially after Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014. It is only since Russia’s all-out invasion in 2022 and the catastrophic war that ensued in its wake that Germany, the West and NATO have come to recognise these territories’ complex interrelationships. Why did it come so naturally to so many people to view Ukraine as part of Russian history, and ignore its links to Poland, Belarus, the Habsburg Empire and Germany?

Semjon Prosjak (1931–2018), born in Zhashkiv in Ukraine, came from a family of photographers. During World War II, he was...

Semjon Prosjak (1931–2018), born in Zhashkiv in Ukraine, came from a family of photographers. During World War II, he was first interred in a German concentration camp and was later a Soviet prisoner. After he was finally released, he began taking photographs. There are three main strands to Prosjak’s work: photographs taken in Dnipro, the extensive Sedniev series and photographs taken in and around Halle (Saale). The pictures from his home city are classic examples of documentary photography. His series on the Ukrainian village of Sedniev from before the Chernobyl disaster depicts a place and a way of life that no longer exist. His Halle photographs synthesise the experiences and skills he acquired through his earlier work. This book presents 100 selected photographs from the three series.

In the late 1920s, a Spanish ‘tyrannicide’ flees from murderous kulaks in the steppes around Kherson, posing as a Ukrainian...

In the late 1920s, a Spanish ‘tyrannicide’ flees from murderous kulaks in the steppes around Kherson, posing as a Ukrainian communist. Two Italian ‘future lovers’ travel through ‘Sloboda Switzerland’, where they meet Schildkröt, a crafty farmer with a drinking problem, Perebyinis, a diligent student determined to have a better future, and the Good Tree Planter, a former woodcutter with a dubious biography who lives in a humble chalet in the heights above the river Donets. Against the backdrop of an absurdly over-the-top plot, Johansen addresses highly topical issues in a light yet thoughtful way. By deftly weaving Ukraine’s landscapes, history and people into a pan-European context (!), he emphasises the distinctiveness of the Ukrainian tradition, which it is more important than ever to bear witness to.

Olesya Khromeychuk tells the story of her brother Volodymyr Pavliv, who was killed on the front line in 2017. She...

Olesya Khromeychuk tells the story of her brother Volodymyr Pavliv, who was killed on the front line in 2017. She writes from the perspective of a civilian and a woman – perspectives that rarely feature in accounts of war – and concentrates on the stories that play out far away from the warzone.

Olga lives in an all-female household – apart from her grandfather, who lords it over everyone else like an ill-tempered...

Olga lives in an all-female household – apart from her grandfather, who lords it over everyone else like an ill-tempered tyrant. As she is the youngest girl, he insists that Olga must study medicine. She can only cope with the dreary routine of university thanks to her Indian classmate Radj and best friend Mascha and the diversion they provide. Things change when David, an old friend of her grandfather’s, turns up harbouring a long-kept secret. Olga realises that her life will be turned completely upside down when it is revealed. Is it a chance to get out of her cage? It’s the summer of 2014, the city is baking in the heat and carefree Odessa is on the verge of a historic turning point.

Samson and his colleague Cholodny have been tasked with investigating illegal meat sales. But they’ve barely got started when Samson’s...

Samson and his colleague Cholodny have been tasked with investigating illegal meat sales. But they’ve barely got started when Samson’s girlfriend Nadezhda is kidnapped by striking railway workers. Samson immediately sets out to free her. But what do the railway workers want? And why has the mysterious Chekist Abyazov been detailed to the militia? These are the questions that Samson must answer if he wants to solve the case and save Nadezhda.

Ever since the war broke out, the Pictoric network, based in Kyiv, has been collecting works by Ukrainian illustrators that...

Ever since the war broke out, the Pictoric network, based in Kyiv, has been collecting works by Ukrainian illustrators that deal with the Russian army’s invasion of their country. There are quiet, personal works, bold works featuring militant slogans and works that are abstract and universal. The images combine the urgency of the historical situation with the network’s clearly formulated aspiration to get these images out into the world. They give an unexpectedly deep insight into the horrors of the war and the mental state of Ukrainian society. But they also give hope, because where there is still art, all cannot be lost.

In his new book, the renowned historian and Eastern Europe expert Serhii Plokhy explains how Russia’s war is going to...

In his new book, the renowned historian and Eastern Europe expert Serhii Plokhy explains how Russia’s war is going to transform the world order in the coming decades. He tells the story of a Ukrainian people that have finally found their identity as a nation on the front line of the new Cold War, and discusses how global foreign policy is moving away from economic cooperation in favour of dominance, vassal states and military power – with grave consequences for us all.

The contributors to this volume – writers, academics and activists, artists and journalists – capture a sense of simultaneity: the...

The contributors to this volume – writers, academics and activists, artists and journalists – capture a sense of simultaneity: the ruining of lives and the places in which they are lived; civilian and military self-assertion; the desire to create a new, peaceful homeland. They describe and analyse the situation of traumatised people in wartime – how these people are profoundly changed, and yet are able to find themselves again in very uncertain times.

A picture book for ages 4+. The farmer leaves the farm and the ducks are left to fend for themselves....

A picture book for ages 4+. The farmer leaves the farm and the ducks are left to fend for themselves. They want to put up a poster advertising for a new farmer, but struggle a bit with the writing. Then they accidentally invent a barter system that lets them thrive throughout the winter.

Malevich and You is a book album packed with creative tasks, stickers and colour-in pictures that lets children aged 5...

Malevich and You is a book album packed with creative tasks, stickers and colour-in pictures that lets children aged 5 to 13 play at being pupils of the famous artist Kazimir Malevich (1879–1935). Each page of the book is dedicated to one of his main ideas. As well as motivating children to read and learn, it invites them to create their own version of the Black Square (1915), the suprematist composition that was Malevich’s most famous work. Getting children to recreate Malevich’s paintings in their own way helps them to understand the basic elements, characters and abstract style of his works.

Karl Schlögel has travelled all over Ukraine down the years. His essays on the country paint a fascinating portrait of...

Karl Schlögel has travelled all over Ukraine down the years. His essays on the country paint a fascinating portrait of places such as Donetsk, Odessa, Kyiv, Kharkiv and Mariupol: once-flourishing cities whose names we now associate with the horrors of Putin’s invasion. These cities represent a distinctive culture and an open, diverse world that the West has ignored for far too long – and which today is imperilled like never before. The new and revised edition of Schlögel’s book, originally published in German in 2015, includes an extended essay on the war in Ukraine.

The Kyiv Architectural Guide presents over 100 notable buildings from 100 years of the city’s history, compiled by Ukrainian architectural...

The Kyiv Architectural Guide presents over 100 notable buildings from 100 years of the city’s history, compiled by Ukrainian architectural historian Semen Shyrochyn. This book looks at typical residential complexes from the period of avant-garde architecture, imposing palaces from the Stalin era, iconic designs belonging to Soviet Modernism and the most significant construction projects since Ukraine gained independence in 1991. Across over 300 pages, this architectural guide proves that Kyiv is much more than the capital of Ukraine. Kyiv is an inseparable part of the European community of nations, where mutual respect for values counts more than the power of the strongest.