Modern Ukrainian literature is created by writers of a new generation, such as: Yuri Andrukhovich, Alexander Irvanets, Yuri Izdrik, Oksana Zabuzhko, Nikolai Ryabchuk, Yuri Pokalchuk, Konstantin Moskalets, Natalka Belotserkovets, Vasily Shklyar, Evgenia Kononenko, Andrey Kurkov, Ivan Malkovich, Bohdan Zholdak, Sergey Zhadan, Pavel Ivanov-Ostoslavsky, Alexandra Barbolina and others.

Yuri Andrukhovich – one of the most famous Ukrainian cultural figures. His works are very popular not only in Ukraine, but also abroad. Andrukhovych’s books and journalistic works are translated and published in many European countries.

1993: Laureate of the Blagovist literary prize

1996: Ray Lapika Award

2001: Herder Prize

2005: Received a special prize as part of the Peace Prize. Erich Maria Remarque

2006: Prize for European Understanding (Leipzig, Germany)

Western criticism identifies Andrukhovych as one of the most prominent representatives of postmodernism, comparing him in importance in the world literary hierarchy with Umberto Eco. His works have been translated into 8 European languages, including the novel “Perversion” published in Germany, Italy, and Poland. The book of essays was published in Austria.

Alexander Irvanets - poet, prose writer, translator. Born on January 24, 1961 in Lvov. Lived in Rivne. In 1988 he graduated from the Moscow Literary Institute. Author of 12 books, 5 of which are poetry collections. Collaborated with many periodicals. Now he has an author’s column in the magazine “Ukraine”. One of the founders of the popular Bu-Ba-Boo society, which also included Yuri Andrukhovich and Victor Neborak. A. Irvanets teaches at the Ostroh Academy. Lives in Irpen.

Yuri Izdryk

In 1989 he founded the magazine “Chetver”, which he has edited since 1992 together with Yuri Andrukhovich.

He became actively involved in artistic life in the late 1980s. He took part in many exhibitions and events, worked on the design of books and magazines, and recorded music. At the same time, the first publications appeared - the cycle of stories “The Last War” and the poetic cycle “Ten Poems about the Motherland”. Some of it was later published in the Warsaw magazine Belching. Acquaintance with the writer Yuri Andrukhovich, as well as the unification of young Ivano-Frankivsk authors around the magazine “Chetver” turned out to be an important factor in the formation of Izdryk as a writer. The result was the emergence from the “countercultural underground” and the first “legitimate” publication of the story “The Island of Krk” in the magazine “Suchasnist”. The story was positively assessed by critics and eventually appeared in a Polish translation in Literatura na Swiecie.

He also performs as an artist (a number of collective and personal exhibitions) and a composer (two piano concertos, the musical composition “Medieval Menagerie” based on poems by Yuri Andrukhovich)

Prose: Krk Island, Wozzeck, Double Leon, AMTM, Flash.

Translations: Czeslaw Miłosz “Kindred Europe”, together with Lydia Stefanowska.

Oksana Zabuzhko – one of the few Ukrainian writers who live on royalties from the books they write. Although, a significant share of income still comes from books published abroad. Zabuzhko’s works were able to conquer European countries, and also found their adherents in the USA, and moreover, in a number of exotic countries.

In 1985, Zabuzhko’s first collection of poems, “Travneviy іnіy,” was published.

Oksana Zabuzhko is a member of the Association of Ukrainian Writers.

In August 2006, the Korrespondent magazine included Zabuzhko among the participants in the TOP-100 “Most Influential People in Ukraine” rating; before that, in June, the writer’s book “Let my people go” topped the “Best Ukrainian Book” list, becoming the choice of the readers of Korrespondent no. 1.

Yuri Pokalchuk - writer, translator, candidate of philological sciences, member of the National Union of Writers since 1976. From 1994 to 1998 - Chairman of the foreign branch of the NSPU. In 1997-2000 - President of the Association of Ukrainian Writers.

In the USSR he was the first translator of the Argentine cultural writer Jorge Luis Borges. In addition to him, he translated Hemingway, Selinger, Borges, Cortazar, Amada, Mario Vargas Llosa, Kipling, Rimbaud and many others, and wrote more than 15 fiction books.

Author of the books “Who are you?”, “First and foremost”, “Colorful melodies”, “Cava from Matagalpi”, “The Great and the Small”, “The Pattern and the Arrow”, “Chimera”, “Those on the Underground” , “Doors to...”, “Lake Wind”, “Another Week of the Month”, “Another Sky”, “Odysseus, Father Icarus”, “It Seems to Stink”, “Beautiful Hour”.
Among Pokalchuk’s most famous books are “Taxi Blues”, “The Ring Road”, “Forbidden Games”, “The Intoxicating Smell of the Jungle”, “The Kama Sutra”.

Konstantin Moskalets - poet, prose writer, literary critic, musician.

One of the founders of the Bakhmach literary group DAK. He served in the army, worked at a radio factory in Chernigov, and was a member of the Lviv theater-studio “Don’t Jury!”, performing as an author-performer of his own songs. Laureate of the first all-Ukrainian festival “Chervona Ruta” (1989) in the “author’s song” category. Author of the words and music of the famous song “She” in Ukraine (“Tomorrow I’ll come to your room...”). Member of the National Union of Writers of Ukraine (1992) and the Association of Ukrainian Writers (1997). Since 1991, he has lived in the village of Mateevka in the Tea Rose Cell, which he built with his own hands, doing exclusively literary work.

Konstantin Moskalets is the author of the poetic books “Dumas” and “Songe du vieil pelerin” (“Song of the Old Pilgrim”), “Night Shepherds of Life” and “The Symbol of the Rose”, the book of prose “Early Autumn”, the philosophical and literary essay “Man on an Ice Floe” " and "The Game Lasts", as well as the book of diary entries "The Cell of the Tea Rose".

The prose of Konstantin Moskalets has been translated into English, German and Japanese; Numerous poems and essays have been translated into Serbian and Polish.

Prize winner named after. A. Beletsky (2000), named after. V. Stus (2004), named after. V. Svidzinsky (2004), named after. M. Kotsyubinsky (2005), named after. G. Skovoroda (2006).

Natalka Belotserkovets – her first book of poetry "Ballad of the Undefeated" was published in 1976 while she was still a student. Poetry collections underground fire(1984) and November(1989) became real signs of Ukrainian poetic life of the 1980s. Her careful, refined lyrics became a serious competitor to the powerful male verses of the 1980s generation. For the entire young generation of post-Chernobyl Ukraine, her poem “We Will Not Die in Paris” was a kind of prayer. Her name is often associated with this poem, although she wrote many other wonderful poems. Belotserkovets's latest book Allergy(1999) is considered the peak of her poetry.

Vasily Shklyar

One of the most famous, widely read and “mystical” modern writers, “the father of the Ukrainian bestseller.” Graduated from the philological faculties of Kyiv and Yerevan universities. While still a student, he wrote his first story “Snow” in Armenia, and in 1976 the book was already published, and he was accepted into the Writers’ Union. Armenia, of course, remained forever in his soul, it left a mark on his worldview, consciousness, feelings, because he lived in this country in his youth, at the time of his formation as a person. All his books, stories, and novels contain Armenian motifs. After graduating from university, he returned to Kyiv, worked in the press, was engaged in journalism, wrote prose and translated from Armenian. The first translations are the stories of the classic Axel Bakunts, poems by Amo Saghyan, Vahan Davtyan, and “Hunting Stories” by Vakhtang Ananyan. From 1988 to 1998, he was engaged in political journalism and visited “hot spots.” This experience (in particular, the details of the rescue of General Dudayev’s family after his death) was then reflected by him in the novel “Elemental”. As a result of a fishing accident, he ended up in intensive care, and after “returning from the other world,” he wrote his most famous novel, “The Key,” within a month. For it, Vasily Shklyar received several literary awards (Grand Prix of the action-packed novel competition “Golden Babai”, prizes from the capital’s magazines “Modernity” and “Oligarch”, prize from the international science fiction convention “Spiral of Centuries”, etc.). Of these, his favorite is “the author whose books were most stolen from stores.” “The Key” has already gone through eight reprints, translated into several languages, published twice in Armenian, and it also contains Armenian realities. Shklyar headed the Dnepr publishing house, within the framework of which he publishes his translations-adaptations of foreign and domestic classics (“Decameron” by Boccaccio, “Taras Bulba” by M. Gogol, “Poviya” by P. Mirny) - in an abbreviated form and in modern language, without archaisms, dialectisms, etc.

About two dozen of his prose books were published, which were translated into Russian, Armenian, Bulgarian, Polish, Swedish and other languages.

Evgenia Kononenko

Writer, translator, author of more than 10 published books. Works as a researcher at the Ukrainian Center for Cultural Research. Winner of the award named after. N. Zerova for translating an anthology of French sonnets (1993). Winner of the Granoslov literary prize for a collection of poetry. Author of short stories, children's books, stories, novels and many translations. Some of Kononenko's short stories have been translated into English, German, French, Finnish, Croatian, Belarusian and Russian.

A book edition of Kononenko’s collection of short stories is being prepared in Russia.

By analogy with Balzac, who wrote “The Human Comedy” all his life, Evgenia Kononenko can be called the demiurge of the “Kyiv comedy”. But unlike the French classics, the genre forms here are much smaller, and the means are more compact.

Andrey Kurkov (April 23, 1961, Leningrad region) - Ukrainian writer, teacher, cinematographer. I started writing in high school. Graduated from the school of Japanese translators. Worked as an editor at the Dnepr publishing house. Since 1988 member of the English Pen Club. Now he is the author of 13 novels and 5 books for children. Since the 1990s, all of Kurkov’s works in Russian in Ukraine have been published by the Folio publishing house (Kharkov). Since 2005, Kurkov’s works in Russia have been published by the Amphora publishing house (St. Petersburg). His novel “Picnic on Ice” sold 150 thousand copies in Ukraine - more than the book of any other contemporary writer in Ukraine. Kurkov's books have been translated into 21 languages.

Kurkov is the only writer in the post-Soviet space whose books are in the top ten European bestsellers. In March 2008, Andrei Kurkov’s novel “The Night Milkman” was included in the “long list” of the Russian literary award “National Bestseller”. He worked as a screenwriter at the A. Dovzhenko film studio. Member of the Union of Cinematographers of Ukraine (since 1993) and the National Union of Writers (since 1994). Since 1998 - member of the European Film Academy and permanent member of the jury of the European Film Academy "Felix" award.

More than 20 feature films and documentaries have been produced based on his scripts.

Books: Don't bring me to Kengaraks, 11 extraordinary things, Bickford's world, Death of a stranger, Picnic on Ice, Good angel of death, Dear friend, companion of the dead man, Geography of a single shot, The last love of the president, Favorite song of a cosmopolitan, The adventures of nonsense (children's book), School of Cat Aeronautics (children's book), The Night Milkman.

Scenarios: Exit, The Pit, Sunday Escape, A Night of Love, Champs Elysees, The Blob, Death of a Stranger, Dead Man's Buddy.

Ivan Malkovich - poet and book publisher, - author of the collections White Stone, Key, Virshi, Iz yangol on the shoulder. His poems became a symbol of the generation of the 80s (a review of the first collection of poems was written by Lina Kostenko). Malkovich is the director of the children's publishing house A-BA-BA-GA-LA-MA-GA. Publishes children's books. Known for his unshakable convictions not only regarding the quality of the book, but also the language - all books are published exclusively in Ukrainian.

One of the first in Ukraine to begin to conquer the foreign market - the rights to the books A-BA-BA were sold to leading publishing houses in ten countries, including such a giant of the book market as Alfred A. Knopf (New York, USA). And Russian translations of The Snow Queen and Tales of Foggy Albion, the rights to which were bought by the publishing house Azbuka (St. Petersburg), entered the top ten best-selling books in Russia.

A-BA-BA, one of the most nominated publishing houses in Ukraine. His books won the Grand Prix 22 times and took first place at the All-Ukrainian Publishers Forum in Lviv and in the Book of Fate ranking. In addition, they consistently lead in sales rankings in Ukraine.

Zholda ́ to Bogda ́ n Alekseevich (1948) - Ukrainian writer, screenwriter, playwright.

Graduated from the Faculty of Philology of Kyiv State University. T. G. Shevchenko (1972). He was the presenter of several television programs on UT-1 and the “1 + 1” channel and a weekly radio program on the first channel of the National Radio “Breaks - literary meetings with Bogdan Zholdak.” He works at the film studio "Ros" at the JSC "Company "Ros", and displays screenwriting skills at the film department of the Kyiv State Institute of Theater Arts named after I. Karpenko-Kary. Member of the National Union of Writers of Ukraine and the National Union of Cinematographers of Ukraine and the Kinopis association.

Books: “Spokusi”, “Yalovichina”, “Like a Dog Under a Tank”, “God Blows”, “Anticlimax”.

Sergey Zhadan - poet, prose writer, essayist, translator. Vice-President of the Association of Ukrainian Writers (since 2000). Translates poetry from German (including Paul Celan), English (including Charles Bukowski), Belarusian (including Andrei Khadanovich), Russian (including Kirill Medvedev, Danilo Davydov) languages. Own texts were translated into German, English, Polish, Serbian, Croatian, Lithuanian, Belarusian, Russian and Armenian.

In March 2008, Zhadan’s novel “Anarchy in the UKR” in Russian translation was included in the “long list” of the Russian literary award “National Bestseller”. The nominee was a writer from St. Petersburg, Dmitry Gorchev. Also, this book was included in the short list in 2008 and received a certificate of honor for the “Book of the Year” competition at the Moscow International Book Fair.

Poetry collections: Quotation Book, General Yuda, Pepsi, Vibrations of poetry, Baladi about the war and the Great Patriotic War, History of culture from the beginning of the century, Quote Book, Maradona, Ethiopia.

Prose: Big Mak (collection of stories), Depeche Mode, Anarchy in the UKR, Anthem of Democratic Youth.

Pavel Ivanov-Ostoslavsky - poet, publicist, local historian, public giver. In 2003, Pavel Igorevich published his first poetry collection, “Sanctuary of Fire.” This book was later reprinted several times. In 2004, Pavel Ivanov-Ostoslavsky organized and headed the Regional branch of the International Association of Russian-Speaking Writers in Kherson, as well as the regional branch of the Union of Writers of the South and East of Ukraine; became the editor of the poetic almanac "Milky Way". In the same year, the poet published a collection of poems, “You and Me.”

2005 - laureate of the First All-Ukrainian Literary Festival "Pushkin Ring" in the nomination "For the aristocracy of creativity."

2006 - laureate of the Nikolai Gumilyov International Literary Prize (awarded by the central organization of the International Association of Russian-Speaking Writers). This award was awarded to the poet for his debut collection “Sanctuary of Fire”.

In 2008, Pavel Ivanov-Ostoslavsky became chairman of the jury of the All-Ukrainian independent literary award "Art-Cimmerick".

The poet is a member of the Interregional Union of Writers of Ukraine, the Union of Russian Journalists and Writers of Ukraine, and the Congress of Russian-Speaking Writers of Ukraine. His poems and articles are published in newspapers and magazines: “Moscow Bulletin”, “Bulava”, “Reflection”, “Kherson Bulletin”, “Hryvnia”, “Tavriysky Krai”, “Russian Enlightenment”, etc.

Alexandra Barbolina

He is a member of the Interregional Union of Writers of Ukraine, the Union of Writers of the South and East of Ukraine, the Congress of Russian-Speaking Writers of Ukraine and the International Association of Russian-Speaking Writers, deputy chairman of the jury of the All-Ukrainian Independent Literary Award "Art-Cimmerick".

The poetess's work is characterized by lyricism and technicality. Her collection of poems, Love Like God's Grace, published in 2000, contains the theme of intimate relationships between a man and a woman. The author touches on the deep psychology of these relationships in his poems. The artistic world of Alexandra Barbolina is full of nobility. The intimacy of the poetess’s poems suggests that for her lyrical heroine, love is like precious nectar enclosed in a cup. This cup must be carried carefully, without spilling a single drop, otherwise there will not be enough nectar to quench the thirst for love.

Alexandra Barbolina’s later poems are a complex search for inner harmony, the author’s desire to comprehend his true purpose.

Alexandra Barbolina prefers poetic miniatures. Her creative credo is to write about complex things briefly and, if possible, simply.

Being a writer is a special and important job. It is very important to correctly convey your thoughts to readers. It is especially difficult to be a writer, since there is a stereotype that a writer must be a man. Women, in turn, express thoughts more vividly and expressively.

Ukrainian writers are a special flavor of Ukrainian literature. They write as they feel, while popularizing the Ukrainian language, thereby making a huge contribution to its development.

We have selected for you 11 of the most popular modern Ukrainian writers who have brought a lot of high-quality works to Ukrainian literature.

1. Irena Karpa

Experimenter, journalist and simply a bright personality. She is not afraid to write candid works, because in them she shows her true self.

Irena Karpa © facebook.com/i.karpa

The most popular works: “50 Hwylins of Grass”, “Froid Been Crying”, “Good and Evil”.

2. Lada Luzina

Although Lada Luzina is a Ukrainian writer, she still remains Russian-speaking. Lada Luzina also combines theater criticism and journalism with her writing activities.

Lada Luzina © facebook.com/lada.luzina

The most popular works: “Collection of stories and novellas: I am a witch!”

3. Lina Kostenko

This outstanding Ukrainian writer was banned for a very long time - her texts were not published. But her willpower was always higher, so she was able to achieve recognition and convey her thoughts to people.

Lina Kostenko © facebook.com/pages/Lina-Kostenko

The most popular works: “Marusya Churay”, “Notes of a Ukrainian Madman”.

4. Katerina Babkina

A poet who is not afraid to write about taboo topics. At the same time, he also conducts journalistic activities and writes scripts.

Katerina Babkina © facebook.com/pages/Kateryna-Babkina

The most popular works: “The Fires of St. Elmo”, “Girchitsya”, “Sonya”

5. Larisa Denisenko

A writer who can combine incompatible things. She is an outstanding lawyer, TV presenter and one of the best writers in Ukraine.

Larisa Denisenko © pravobukvarik.pravoua.computers.net.ua

The most popular works: “Corporation of Idiots”, “Pomilkov’s Interception or Life Behind the Plan”, “Cavoy Taste of Cinnamon”

6. Svetlana Povalyaeva

A journalist who can very accurately convey the mood of society with her works.

Svetlana Povalyaeva © Tatyana Davydenko,

Historically, the Ukrainian people have always been creative, loved to sing and dance, invent poems and songs, myths and legends. Therefore, for many centuries, truly great and talented people have worked in all corners of Ukraine.

Ukrainian literature is phenomenal and unusual in its essence. Famous Ukrainian writers described each historical stage metaphorically and topically. That is why very real characters look at us through the lines from yellowed sheets of paper. And we, delving deeper into the narrative, begin to understand what worries the author, inspires, frightens and encourages. It is quite possible to learn history from the masterpieces of Ukrainian literature - events are described so truthfully and sometimes painfully.

Who are all these geniuses of the pen who penetrate the soul with words and make us laugh and cry with them? What are their names and what did they do? How did they achieve success and did they find it at all? Or maybe they never learned that their creations brought them eternal fame and veneration, forever inscribing their name in the classics of Ukrainian literature?

Unfortunately, not all Ukrainian writers were able to enter the world literary arena. Many masterpieces have never been in the hands of the Germans, Americans, or British. Hundreds of wonderful books did not receive their well-deserved prizes in literary competitions in France or Germany. But they are really worth reading and understanding.

And although hundreds of talented people have written on the “nightingale language,” perhaps it’s worth starting with a unique and phenomenal woman. This brilliant poetess, whose lines express a storm of emotions, and whose poems remain deep in the heart. And her name is Lesya Ukrainka.

Larisa Petrovna Kosach-Kvitka

Lesya, being a weak and small woman, showed incredible fortitude and courage, becoming an example to be followed by millions of people. The poetess was born in 1871 into the noble family of the famous writer O. Pchilka. At birth, the girl was given the name Larisa, and her real last name was Kosach-Kvitka.

Since childhood, suffering from a terrible disease - bone tuberculosis - Lesya Ukrainka was bedridden almost all the time. Lived in the South. The beneficial influence of the mother and passion for books (especially the master of Ukrainian literature - Taras Shevchenko) bore fruit.

From a young age, the girl began to create and publish in various newspapers. Like many famous Ukrainian writers, in her works Larisa adhered to the sentiments and traditions of T. G. Shevchenko, creating several cycles of lyrical and philosophical poems.

About Lesya's work

Intrigued by magical mythology and world history, Lesya devoted many books to this topic. Most of all, she liked novels about Ancient Greece, Rome, Egypt, about humanism and human qualities, about the fight against despotism and evil, as well as mystical stories about the undead and the nature of Western Ukraine.

It should be noted that Lesya Ukrainka was a polyglot and knew more than ten languages. This gave her the opportunity to make high-quality literary translations of the works of Hugo, Shakespeare, Byron, Homer, Heine and Mickiewicz.

The most famous works that everyone is recommended to read are “The Forest Song”, “Possessed”, “Cassandra”, “The Stone Lord” and “Songs about Freedom”.

Marko Vovchok

Among the famous writers of Ukraine there was another extraordinary woman. Many called her the Ukrainian George Sand - just as her patron Panteleimon Kulish dreamed. It was he who became her first assistant and editor, giving her the first impetus to develop her potential.

Woman with a fiery heart

Marko Vovchok was a fatal woman. As a child, her mother sent her to a private boarding school, away from her father’s bad influence, then to Orel to live with a rich aunt. There the endless love cycles began. Marco Vovchok - Maria Vilinskaya - was a very beautiful girl, so it is not surprising that crowds of gentlemen revolved around her all her life.

Among these gentlemen were famous writers whose names are well known to us. Even though she tied the knot (as she later admitted, not for love) with Opanas Markovich, her husband could not do anything with the attractive energy of this young lady. Turgenev, Kostomarov and Taras Shevchenko fell at her feet. And everyone wanted to become her teacher and patron.

"Marusya"

The most famous work of Marko Vovchok is the story “Marusya” about a girl who gave her life to help the Cossacks. The creation impressed readers and critics so much that Maria was awarded an honorary award from the French Academy.

Men in Ukrainian literature

The creativity of Ukrainian writers was also under the auspices of talented men. One of them was Pavel Gubenko. Readers know him under the pseudonym Ostap Cherry. His satirical works made readers laugh more than once. Unfortunately, this man, who smiles at us from newspaper pages and literature textbooks, had few reasons for joy in his life.

Pavel Gubenko

Being a political prisoner, Pavel Gubenko honestly served his required 10 years in a forced labor camp. He did not abandon creativity, and when his stern superiors instructed him to write a series of stories from the lives of prisoners, even there he could not resist irony!

The writer's life path

But life put everything in its place. The one who previously accused Ostap Vishnya himself ended up in the dock and became an “enemy of the people.” And the Ukrainian author returned home ten years later and continued doing what he loved.

But these long years in correctional camps left a terrible imprint on Pavel Gubenko’s condition. Even after the war, returning to the already free Kyiv, he still could not forget the terrible episodes. Most likely, the endless inner struggles of a man who always smiled and never cried led to his tragic death from a heart attack at the age of 66.

Ivan Drach

A short excursion into the work of Ukrainian writers ends with Ivan Drach. Many modern authors still turn to this master of (self-)irony, witty words and humor for advice.

Life story of a genius

Ivan Fedorovich Drach began his creative career when he was still a seventh-grader, with a poem eagerly published in a local newspaper. As soon as the writer graduated from high school, he began teaching Russian language and literature in a rural school. After the army, Ivan entered the philological department of Kyiv University, which he never graduated from. And all because a talented student will be offered a job in a newspaper, and then, after the course, the writer will receive the specialty of film playwright in Moscow. Returning to Kyiv, Ivan Fedorovich Drach begins working at the famous film studio named after A. Dovzhenko.

Over more than 30 years of creative activity, a huge number of collections of poems, translations, articles and even film stories have been published from the pen of Ivan Drach. His works have been translated and published in dozens of countries and appreciated throughout the world.

An eventful life tempered the writer’s character, fostering in him an active civic position and a unique temperament. The works of Ivan Fedorovich express the sentiments of the sixties and children of war, thirsting for change and praising the achievements of human thought.

What's better to read?

It is better to start getting acquainted with the work of Ivan Drach with the poem “Pero”. It is this that is the credo of life and conveys the leitmotifs that permeate the entire work of the brilliant poet and writer.

These famous Ukrainian writers made an invaluable contribution to domestic and world literature. Decades later, their works convey to us current thoughts, teach and help in various life situations. The work of Ukrainian writers has enormous literary and moral value, is perfect for teenagers and adults and will bring pleasure from reading.

Each of the Ukrainian authors is unique in their own way, and their unusual individual style will help you recognize your favorite writer from the first lines. Such a writer’s “flower garden” makes Ukrainian literature truly extraordinary, rich and interesting.

In recent months, the Library of Ukrainian Literature in Moscow has not disappeared from the city news. At the end of October, its director Natalya Sharina faced a criminal case for allegedly distributing among readers books by the Ukrainian nationalist Dmitro Korchinsky, which are recognized as extremist in Russia. Last week the library was searched again. Official Kyiv called them a provocation.

The Village asked Kyiv literary critic Yuri Volodarsky to help understand what modern Ukrainian literature is. The editors asked him to select ten most important books written after Ukraine gained independence, in both Ukrainian and Russian, to show the value of modern Ukrainian literature and the importance of the Library of Ukrainian Literature for Moscow.

YURIY VOLODARSKY

publicist, critic, jury member of the Ukrainian literary award “BBC Book of the Year” (Kyiv)

I considered it necessary to recommend a list of books from the period of Ukrainian independence, that is, written after 1991. These books may not be the best, but they are probably the most significant in Ukrainian literature. In addition, I tried to choose books that had already been translated into Russian. Because otherwise the Russian reader is unlikely to be able to read them: there are people who say that the Ukrainian language is some kind of non-existent language, but they themselves will not be able to understand Ukrainian either on paper or by ear.

To denote modern Ukrainian literature, local criticism uses the term “suchasna Ukrainian literature”, in abbreviation - suchakrlit. Although this term is a little ironic, it is used in the Ukrainian literary environment.

The situation with Russian-language authors is interesting, because there is debate about whether they can be considered part of modern Ukrainian literature. I am of the unequivocal opinion that it is not only possible, but absolutely necessary. The problem is that for the last 24 years, Russian-language poets and prose writers in Ukraine have been somehow pushed aside from the general literary process. The last two books on this list were written in Russian.

Yuri Andrukhovich - “Moscoviada”

"Moskoviada", 1993

Yuri Andrukhovych is one of the founding fathers of modern Ukrainian literature. You could even say that it started with him. “Moscoviada” is his second novel, dedicated to the Moscow period of the life of the author, who studied at the Gorky Literary Institute. This is a kind of programmatic book about the fact that Ukraine is not Russia and that a Ukrainian is not Russian. The main character travels around Moscow, communicates with different people, finds himself in everyday situations and gradually gets drunk. That is, this is such an alcohol trip, reminiscent of “Moscow - Petushki” by Venedikt Erofeev. But in Andrukhovich’s work the hero does not die, and as it develops the action becomes more and more phantasmagorical. And it is at the end that declarations are made that the Ukrainian person is not Russian. To understand the differences between Ukraine and Russia, “Moscoviada” is a must-read.

Oksana Zabuzhko - “Field research of Ukrainian sex”

“Polish investigation into Ukrainian sex”, 1996

Oksana Zabuzhko’s story “Field Research of Ukrainian Sex” was published in the mid-1990s, and then critic Lev Danilkin called the author a national feminist. He was absolutely right in the sense that this is also a declaration, and this is inherent in the literature of the first years of Ukrainian independence. This is a book about female love and dependence on a man, which the heroine overcomes in the course of the story, but also with pronounced national overtones. Although the title of the book sounds shocking, in reality the book is quite chaste. By the way, several years ago Zabuzhko published a grandiose novel, “The Museum of Abandoned Secrets,” which many called almost the main book of suchukrlit. Much of it is dedicated to the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, although the author said that the book is not about the UPA, but about love. They managed to translate it into Russian. Now it is impossible to imagine the release of such a book in Russia.

Sergei Zhadan - Voroshilovgrad

Sergei Zhadan is the main character of modern Ukrainian literature. He is both a poet and a prose writer, winner of many awards, including the BBC Book of the Year, which can be considered an analogue of the Russian Big Book and Russian Booker. The title of the novel “Voroshilovgrad” is not directly related to the real Voroshilovgrad, which is now called Lugansk. The novel is about the need to take care and protect your own. His hero is a restless young man who hangs out in the city doing office work, and then finds out that his brother has disappeared and what is left of him is a gas station, which must be saved from the raiders laying claim to it. The leitmotif of the novel is two words that are often mentioned there: “vdyachnіst” and “vіdpovіdalnіst”, which can be translated as “gratitude” and “responsibility.” Zhadan is characterized by the ability to work in different literary registers: he combines a strong narrative with a purely poetic approach. And in his later novels there is always a mythological component: in “Voroshilovgrad” the hero, by traveling by bus, actually crosses the River Styx and goes to the kingdom of the dead. We do not quite understand what is happening to the hero: is it reality or fiction, reality or some kind of symbolic journey.

Taras Prokhasko - “Difficult”

“Uneasy”, 2002

Taras Prokhasko is considered one of the most original Ukrainian authors, but he writes catastrophically little. He is the author of just one short novel, Uneasy. This is Ukrainian magical realism, which grows not in accessible flat areas, but in rugged remote areas. For Pavic it was the Balkans, and for Prokhasko it was the Carpathians. The writer depicts a completely mythological Carpathian world, where its own laws apply, not only social ones, but also the laws of the world order. The main character marries one woman, and each subsequent woman is his daughter from the previous one. Naturally, incest should not be taken literally; it also has a mythological character. Prokhasko is a unique Ukrainian writer. His novel could not have been written anywhere except the Carpathians.

Yuri Izdryk - “Wozzeck”

If Prokhasko is Ukrainian mythology, and Zhadan is social literature, then Izdryk is such an introverted, essay-like, almost plotless prose with a huge number of references to other texts of suchukrlit. The text is filled with sensations from everything in the world: from what a person sees, what he reads, from what he reads about what he sees, and what he sees in what he reads. Reading Izdryk is always difficult: he doesn’t favor the plot. The hero of “Wozzeck” is Izdryk himself, who appears in different guises. It is characteristic that almost all the writers on this list are from the west of Ukraine. These are representatives of the so-called “Stanislav phenomenon”, the name of which is associated with Ivano-Frankivsk, which was called Stanislav until 1961. This phenomenon characterizes a sharp departure from socialist realism of the Soviet period and the rapid manifestation of postmodernism in Ukrainian literature.

Alexander Irvanets - “Rivne/Rivne”

This novel is important, but also secondary. Alexander Irvanets is a colleague of Yuri Andrukhovich in the group “BuBaBaBu” (“Burlesque, farce, buffoonery”), with which suchukrlit began in the mid-1980s. The novel “Rivne/Rivne” is about the city where Irvanets lived a significant part of his life. This is a kind of dystopia in which Moscow extends its influence over most of Ukraine, and the border between Russian-controlled Ukrainian territories and those that have retained independence runs through the middle of the city of Rivne. Therefore, part of the city is called in Ukrainian, and part in Russian. And there is a great contrast between life in these parts of the city. A dull “scoop” on one side and a completely prosperous, joyful, meaningful life from the point of view of the arts in the second half. To any person who is well acquainted with Russian literature of the second half of the 20th century, this plot inevitably resembles Vasily Aksenov’s novel “The Island of Crimea”.

Maria Matios - “Sweet Darusya”

“Licorice Darusya”, 2004

Maria Matios is also a representative of Western Ukrainian literature, or rather its rural discourse. She was born in the Chernivtsi region, a territory that was either under Austria-Hungary or under Russia. It passed from hand to hand and became a battlefield for different powers, which trampled it and destroyed it simply because they passed there. The main character of the novel is a girl whose family was destroyed by the NKVD; she was left alone and silent. This is probably the main novel about what happened in western Ukraine after it came under Soviet control.

Sofia Andrukhovich - “Felix Austria”

"Felix Austria", 2014

Sofia Andrukhovich is the daughter of Yuri Andrukhovich. Her novel Felix Austria won the BBC Book of the Year last year. The name is a Latin fragment of a phrase that one of the Austro-Hungarian emperors once said: “Let others wage war! You, happy Austria, get married!” The action takes place in Stanislav, now Ivano-Frankivsk, in 1900. The main character is a Rusyn (that is, Ukrainian) maid in an Austrian-Polish family, whose owner is both her friend and everything else. It turns out to be an interesting symbol: the mistress symbolizes Austria-Hungary, and the maid symbolizes the Ukrainian lands within it. This is a deconstruction of the myth in Ukrainian culture about the supposedly happy and carefree days of Western Ukraine as part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This is not true. Even though life was better than under the Soviets, it is also clear that grace is illusory, and Andrukhovich shows this in a single family. Towards the end, the author recalls that Austria-Hungary, whose prosperity seemed unshakable, after some 18 years will cease to exist at all.

Vladimir Rafeenko - “Demon of Descartes”

Vladimir Rafeenko, in my opinion, is the most significant Russian-language writer in Ukraine. Previously, he lived in Donetsk, and in July 2014, for all obvious reasons, he moved to Kyiv. Rafeenko is a successor to Gogol's tradition. His novels are always phantasmagoria, but with a very strong social component and a very peculiar language, which combines high and low styles, switching registers from mythological to realistic. When Rafeenko lived in Donetsk, his books were practically unknown in the rest of Ukraine. They were published in marginal Donbass publications, but then he won Russian Prize prizes for two years. First it was “Moscow Divertissement”, and then “Descartes’ Demon”. The latter was published in Eksmo, and Rafeenko became famous in his homeland. This is a ridiculous way: to become famous in Kyiv, you need to be published in Moscow.

Karine Arutyunova - “Say Red”

Karine Arutyunova started writing quite late: she published her first book when she was over 40. She writes short prose, which is marked by a very special author’s style. This is such an exclusive attention to the evidence of all the senses. In her works there are many shades, colors, olfactory and tactile sensations, always very subjective evidence of the world. This prose can be called women's prose, but not in terms of plots, but in terms of temperament. If you asked me what this book was about, I wouldn't be able to answer. It's about everything. There are a million everyday situations, but it is not they themselves that are important, but their perception and the ability to present them in the author’s originality. In addition to novels, there are also short stories. Reading them is sometimes faster and more joyful - at least for those who are looking for tactile, sound, visual and other small pleasures in life.