Orphanage 41 by Victor Malarek

Published by Victor Malarek & Friesen Press, July, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4602-4413-5 Hardcover
ISBN: 978-1-4602-4414-2 Paperback
ISBN: 978-1-4602-4415-9 eBook
264 pages 

Review by Natalia Baziuk

Orphanage 41, an account of a young man's search for his true mother, engages the reader with a quickly developing plot of corruption, dishonesty, and notably trafficking of babies. Along with this, the author also deals with prostitution, how women are often victimized, but most importantly, how societal values contribute to their continued marginalization.

Mykola Yashan is introduced as a third year university student of Ukrainian-Canadian descent, an only child of a scholar and notable Ukrainian historian, who was well respected in academic circles of the diaspora, but also internationally.

His somewhat normal life comes to an abrupt end, when both parents are killed instantly in a motor vehicle accident. Losing both parents – an aloof and antagonistic father, and a cherished and supportive mother – leaves Mykola emotionally destroyed. The shock only continues to escalate when he discovers documents that show he was an adoptee from an orphanage in Ukraine. Of course, this provides a greater depth of understanding as to the strained relationship with his father, but at the same time creates a curiosity and desire to find out about his real mother. Mykola decides to visit Ukraine, after finding the name of the orphanage and its director, Natalka Matlinsky. Against the advice of his godmother Sonia, what starts off as a mere fact finding mission about his supposedly dead biological mother, turns into a dangerous search for his true mother, her family, and in the end, an evolutionary process of self-discovery, along with a sub-plot that exposes the evil and corrupt Matlinsky, who trades in babies for self-gain.

Upon his arrival in Lviv, Mykola meets a diverse cast of characters, who all reflect and exemplify in some way the heartbreak and human resilience, as well as the best and worst traits often cultivated by the former communist system. From the kindly cab driver (Alex) and simple-minded caretaker (Petro) of the orphanage, to the corrupt village priest negotiating moral dilemmas with only self-preservation in mind, and slimy, lawless bureaucrats, each person Mykola meets is painted with realism, despite being a fictional novel. Malarek uses these individuals to demonstrate the often impossible moral choices that are forced upon people as they attempt to survive in a flood of poverty, corruption and political instability.

Mykola's whirlwind journey takes him from the orphanage, where he is able to determine that his mother is still alive, to the village where her family resides. Upon arrival in the village, Mykola realizes after asking questions of the family, that no answers will be forthcoming, but instead his interest is met with great anger. The mystery deepens, but the village priest does at least disclose the whereabouts of Mykola's mother, Kateryna. He travels to find her, and discovers that she is a town prostitute, controlled by her pimp Yuri.  For Mykola this is a rude awakening, a reality he was not prepared for, but one that he must now come to terms with. Her story certainly leaves Mykola in a quandary, as he realizes that she did not choose this life, nor did she willingly give up her son for adoption. Village and societal values left Kateryna with few options, especially since no one, including family or friends, wanted to confront the true culprit – the sister of the priest. Mykola decides that he needs to get his mother away from this life but unfortunately, before he succeeds in accomplishing this, she is murdered with Matlinsky being the likely instigator of this murder.

Mykola manages to obtain the necessary documentation to expose Matlinsky and her corrupt baby adoption business. As he returns home to Canada, he meets his biological father and Sister Eugenia, the nun who helped to rescue his mother Kateryna from prostitution on the streets of Italy.

At the end of the book, we see a wiser and more mature Mykola – a young man who has to deal with a double life story and in the process transcends enormous personal pain, in order to improve and benefit the lives of others. Somehow, he must find the middle road – the answer – which will allow him to honour his biological mother for the hardships she endured, but at the same time to show his gratitude and respect to his adoptive mother. Sister Eugenia, whom he met in Italy, helped him deal with his own feelings of shame, when she explained that many women are prostituted and forced into this life. According to Sister Eugenia, silence and indifference result in a form of complicity. Mykola takes this message to heart, and the result of this is Kateryna's House in Ukraine, a rehabilitation home for prostituted women, which he founded as a tribute to both his mothers.

Needless to say, this novel is brilliantly written, fast-paced, well-plotted, with a cast of characters that clearly represents post-Soviet society as well as the Canadian Ukrainian diaspora. Victor Malarek, the author of this poignant novel, is a well-respected investigative journalist. He has written widely about trafficking of women and speaks frankly of the impact of institutionalization upon his own childhood. As a result of this unfortunate set of circumstances, he, more than most, understands how powerful the quest for identity is, and its resultant motivational force. Mykola's journey is not just an understanding of his past, but a search for meaning, which he, in the end, finds.

Victor Malarek shared his perspectives on human trafficking, institutionalization and investigative journalism among other topics with Rozmova Book Club members.

The Boy Who Stole from the Dead by Orest Stelmach

Published by Thomas & Mercer, March 2014
ISBN: 978-1477809488 paperback
ASIN: B00CO9CRSS e-book
366 pages

Author's summary

Bobby Kungenook, a mysterious seventeen-year-old hockey phenom from the Arctic Circle, is accused of murder in New York City. Bobby's guardian, Nadia Tesla, knows his true identity. Revealing his secret could cost him his life. Sports journalist Lauren Ross is in hot pursuit of Bobby's story. Where did the boy with the blazing speed and magical hands come from? Why has no one heard of him before?

Nadia's certain the boy is innocent, but the police disagree. They have a signed confession and an eyewitness. To discover the truth about that night in New York, Nadia must dig into the boy's past. Her international investigation — in New York, London and Ukraine — will make her an unwitting pawn in a deadly game and reignite her quest for a priceless treasure, one that could alter mankind forever.
Source: http://oreststelmach.com/boy-who-stole-from-the-dead.php

The Boy from Reactor 4 by Orest Stelmach

Published by Thomas & Mercer, March 2013
ISBN: 978-1612186085 paperback

ASIN: B008BU75D6 e-book

377 pages

Review by Karen Yarmol-Franko

The Boy From Reactor 4 is the first novel of The Nadia Tesla Series about a courageous and spontaneous American-Ukrainian heroine, Nadia Tesla. She embarks on a quest to solve a mystery that is connected with her father and a long-lost uncle. Along the way, she encounters a young cousin she must smuggle out of Ukraine. Nadia is threatened, bugged, tailed, shot at, and followed across international borders in a high intensity chase by Ukrainian criminals that is at times, violent and brutal. Her quest takes her from New York to Kyiv, inside the boundaries of the ravaged Chernobyl, through the Siberian tundra, and over the Bering Strait to Alaska – home to American soil. 

Author Orest Stelmach has most certainly done his research. He has a knack for creating vivid and lively scenes putting you ‘on location’. His haunting and immersive depiction of the exclusion zone that surrounds the ruins of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor gives readers an intimate glimpse into a neglected and desperate part of the world. His portrayal of Ukraine’s capital city of Kyiv, and weaving of the history and culture of Ukraine into the story is skillful, though somewhat forced. As Nadia circumnavigates the globe, Stelmach describes each location, from New York’s city streets, to the treacherous backroads of the Siberian tundra, to the claustrophobic caves of Pecherska Lavra in Kyiv, in rich detail. In fact, with such diverse scenery, non-stop action, and diverse characters, The Boy From Reactor 4 would translate well into film.

While Stelmach fully develops and details the intense action and vivid locations, the same cannot be said of the characters. We understand little of the “Boy” of the title. And Stelmach’s gangsters, while terrifying, are described superficially. Nadia’s mother, brother and Johnny Tanner are also enigmas but perhaps Stelmach will develop them further in the next books in the series. Having read the prequel novel, The Altar Girl, I had a deeper insight into Nadia. Stelmach repeats some of those details in this novel, but Nadia’s strong motivations would’ve been a mystery had I not recalled the character development from the prequel novel.

The Boy from Reactor 4, with its short chapters and breakneck pace, is an easy yet compelling read embellished with Ukrainian history lessons along the way. The surprise ending pays a proud and patriotic homage to America that reminds North American readers to be proud of their heritage yet grateful for their freedom.

Note: Readers should note that Orest Stelmach donated 10 percent of royalties from the first two books in the series, The Boy from Reactor 4, and The Boy who Stole from the Dead to Chernobyl Children International (CCI). CCI funds surgical missions to Ukraine to help victims of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.

Stolen Child by Marsha Skrypuch

Published by Scholastic Canada, February 1, 2010
ISBN-10: 0545986125
ISBN-13: 978-0545986120
154 pages

Summary

Stolen from her family by the Nazis, Nadia is a young girl who tries to make sense of her confusing memories and haunting dreams. Bit by bit she starts to uncover the truth—that the German family she grew up with, the woman who calls herself Nadia's mother, are not who they say they are.

Beyond her privileged German childhood, Nadia unearths memories of a woman singing her a lullaby, while the taste of gingersnap cookies brings her back to a strangely familiar, yet unknown, past. Piece by piece, Nadia comes to realize who her real family was. But where are they now? What became of them? And what is her real name?

This story of a Lebensborn girl — a child kidnapped for her "Aryan looks" by the Nazis in their frenzy to build a master race — reveals one child's fierce determination to uncover her past against incredible odds.
Source: https://books.google.ca/books/about/Stolen_Child.html?id=ixNfQqoDicMC

Blood & Salt by Barbara Sapergia

Published by Coteau Books, September 2012
ISBN: 9781550505139
448 pages

Summary

Blood and Salt imagines the lives of men interned in Banff National Park from 1915 to 1917. Prisoners lived in tents at Castle Mountain in the summer and in bunkhouses in Banff in the winter.
In August, 1915, a young man finds himself on a train bound for Castle Mountain. "What have I done wrong?" he wonders. "Why am I here?"

He came to Canada to be with his love, Halya. Now he doesn't know if he'll ever find her.

Taras does make wonderful friends in the internment camp: Yuriy the optimistic young farmer; Tymko the radical socialist; Myroslav the scholarly schoolteacher; Ihor the Hutsul; Bohdan the carver. These men help him survive. In the evening the men tell each other their stories. As Taras talks about his life, his understanding grows; he becomes a storyteller.

Taras's love, Halya, is a strong-willed, passionate, and unsentimental woman, determined to be with the man she chooses, despite her father's objections. Taras thinks of her on the train to Castle Mountain.

Another layer of the story reveals the life of Taras Shevchenko, Ukraine's great poet, artist, and patriot. Taras's friend Myroslav tells stories of Shevchenko's love of Ukrainian culture and his desire for Ukraine to become a free, independent country.
Excerpted from: http://www.barbarasapergia.com/

The Silence of Trees by Valya Dudycz Lupescu

Published by Wolfsword Press, September 23, 2010
ISBN-10: 0982126131
ISBN-13: 978-0982126134
323 pages

Summary

Too often the women of history have been silenced, but their stories have power- to reveal, to teach, and to transform. This is one such story. In Chicago's Ukrainian Village, Nadya Lysenko has built her life on a foundation of secrets. When Nadya was sixteen, she snuck out of her house in Western Ukraine to meet a fortuneteller in the woods. Ignoring the threat of Nazis and Russians, Nadya was driven by love and a desire to learn the unknown. She never expected it to be the last time she would see her family. Years later, Nadya continues to be haunted by the death of her parents and sisters. She clings to her traditions and stories from Ukraine, the only parts of her past that she can share with her family. The myths and magic of Nadya's childhood are still a part of her reality: house spirits misplace keys and glasses, dreams unite friends across time and space, and a fortuneteller's cards predict the future. Her beloved dead also insist on being heard, through dreams and whispers in the night. They want the truth to come out. Nadya needs to face her past and confront the secrets she buried within – The Silence of Trees.
Source: http://www.amazon.ca/Silence-Trees-Valya-Dudycz-Lupescu/dp/0982126131

Fieldwork in Ukrainian Sex by Oksana Zabuzhko

Translated by Halyna Hryn
Published by Amazon Crossing, June 6, 2011
ISBN 978-1-6110900-8-6
164 pages
 
Review by Uliana Pasicznyk
 
This book rattled Rozmova readers. Reactions differed, as did understanding and opinion, but none of us who read Fieldwork in Ukrainian Sex came away indifferent or unconcerned. Given its provocative title, there was reason to think this book would be sensational—and so it is, but not as we might have expected.
 
Zabuzhko’s book is no precursor to Fifty Shades of Grey. Yes, there is eroticism here, but it is just one element in an astoundingly rich and very personal story. It is, in fact, the psychological odyssey of a talented, clever, ambitious, and supremely self-absorbed Ukrainian woman, told in the first person and in a style bearing comparison to Joyce’s Ulysses. The story focuses on a relationship that has come to an end. Both the heroine, Oksana, and her lover, Mykola, are artists—she a writer, he a painter and sculptor—and both appear here as creative and dynamic people. But this is wholly her story, and she tells it intimately and powerfully. As a writer, her world is one of language and literature. She conveys that world, together with the story of her feelings for Mykola and what has happened between them, in language that is at once expressive, evocative, and searingly intense. The narrative requires close attention, for it shifts between layers of time and place. The setting and action switch between Ukraine and several cities in the eastern U.S., and the time is the early 1990s, the first years of Ukraine’s independence. Our narrator and heroine passionately addresses matters ranging from social conventions to literary motifs to philosophical ideas, but underlying everything she says is anguish and grief over the obsessive relationship that has dominated her life. As her story with Mykola unfolds, it becomes clear that she cannot comprehend her lover or herself without recalling and examining their separate lives. In confronting what happened to each of them as individuals and to the society to which they belong, she realizes that their lives have been shaped by a painful historical past that also determined how they could relate to one another.
 
When this book appeared in 1996, Oksana Zabuzhko was already an acclaimed poet and literary critic. This, her first novel, became a best-seller and remains one today. In Halyna Hryn, her work found a gifted translator who has produced an English edition no less expressive and evocative than the Ukrainian original. The translation, a paperback of 164 pages, was published by AmazonCrossing and is available online. Like most good literature, this book both beckons and challenges its readers. If the experience of our Rozmova group is any gauge, those who take up the challenge will not leave it unmoved. For some readers, it may well be a revelatory experience—an insight into a nation’s pervasive past through the telling of one woman’s unique story.
     

Bequest by Anna Shevchenko

Published by Headline, October 14, 2010
ISBN-10: 0755356373
ISBN-13: 978-0755356379
416 pages

Summary
 
History can be a powerful and ruthless enemy.

In Moscow, ambitious Lieutenant Taras Petrenko stumbles across file N1247, a case opened by the Russian secret police more than two centuries ago. Three crucial documents are missing which, if found, could change the lives of millions. One country would come crashing down. A second country would never forgive the discovery, and a third would never forget. Taras is determined not let this happen – but others believe it should.

Kate, a young solicitor in London, is thrust into the mystery of an eighteenth-century bequest when she meets a secretive Ukrainian. He has three documents he claims would alter the balance of power in Europe. As a treacherous race to uncover the truth becomes a harrowing journey into the shadowy side of power, what price will be paid?
Source: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bequest-A-K-Shevchenko/dp/0755356373

Sweet Snow by Alexander Motyl

Published by Cervena Barva Press, April 9, 2013
ISBN-10: 0988371375
ISBN-13: 978-0988371378
156 pages 

Summary

Sweet Snow is set in the winter of 1933 in Ukraine. A terrible famine is raging in the countryside, while the Soviet secret police is arresting suspected spies in the cities. A German nobleman from Berlin, a Jewish communist from New York, a Polish diplomat from Lwów, and a Ukrainian nationalist from Vienna come to share a cell in some unknown prison. One day, as they are being transported to another prison, their van overturns, their guards are killed, and they are freed — to wander amidst the devastated villages, desolate landscapes, snowbound villages, and frozen corpses. As they struggle to survive, they come to grips with the horror of the famine as well as with their own delusions, weaknesses, and mortality.
Source: http://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Snow-Alexander-Motyl/dp/0988371375

Maria: A Chronicle of Life by Ulas Samchuk

Translated by Roma Franko, edited by Paul Cipywnyk

Published by Language Lanterns Publications Inc., 2011
Original published 1934

ISBN 978-0-99877750-0-9 
256 pages

Review by Daria Olynyk

A story of a Ukrainian peasant woman whose life follows a path to the famine-genocide

In 1934, at the age of 29, Ulas Samchuk published Maria, a historical fiction depicting the life of a Ukrainian peasant woman from her birth to her death. He tells us that Maria lived for "twenty-six thousand, two hundred and fifty-eight days" and, during this time, she experienced a plethora of emotions - loves, losses, joy, heartache and grief.

From the outset, Samchuk describes the bond between the newborn Maria and her own mother, Oksana. Motherhood plays a prominent role in this book as evidenced in Samchuk's dedication "To the mothers who died of hunger in Ukraine in 1932-33". Eighty years ago, this relatively young man made the unconventional decision of writing a novel about peasants as seen through the eyes of a woman. This, in itself, speaks to his character and determination.

Many books and historical texts describe the situation and circumstances of Ukraine during the years leading up to the fall of the Russian Romanov dynasty and the famine-genocide known as the Holodomor. The uniqueness which Samchuk brings to the history of this period is the personal perspective of the peasant family which was deeply rooted and tied both to the land and to faith. This is a story about Maria and her life, set against a period of history that saw immense and significant political changes.

We see how these changes completely transform the society in which the peasants lived and the affect they had on the characters at a personal level - this is what makes this book so compelling. Events unfolded and developed gradually over a period of the roughly seventy years of Maria's life. The characters wanted and hoped for stability so that they could simply continue to farm and worship but, with each subsequent political change and development, their desires and hopes grew further out of reach until survival became the only reality that they hoped for.

 

Samchuk writes of how the peasants relied on snippets of information from travellers going to and from their villages to communicate information about events happening outside of their village which were having such disastrous effects and implications on their lives.

Maria's story unfolds initially with joy, happiness and abundance; slowly and subtly Samchuk foreshadows the heart-wrenching and devastating conclusion even in the opening paragraphs, "she was a living being who …. felt hunger pains, and loudly made them know ".

The book is divided into 3 sections: A Book about the Birth of Maria, A Book of Maria's Days, and finally, A Book about Bread (which Samchuk re-wrote in 1952).

In the first book, Samchuk develops the character of Maria beginning with her as an infant, and following her life as a child orphan, a young naive bride who marries for security and not for love, who experiences the devastating death of her first two children and, finally, matures to realize that she is determined to have and marry her true love, Korniy.

The second book opens in the early 1900s, when Maria is in her early 40s. The men of the village are conscripted to fight for Russia but life on the farm must continue. Throughout the village, "Stacks of sheaves are lined up as in a parade on the fields, but on the roadways horses are neighing and thousands of men's feet are raising clouds of dust."

When Maria's oldest son is imprisoned during the First World War., he writes from Germany and asks her to send him rye biscuits. Samchuk again effectively foreshadows the famine-genocide: "How bad things must be if people over there don't have even rye biscuits. …God forbid that he should die of hunger .... It would be better for him to die of a bullet than from hunger….".

The theme of religion is interwoven throughout the entire novel. When life was good, the symbol and role of the church figured prominently and easily into the peasants' everyday lives. Church and faith in God provided them with a foundation and also gave them a refuge, a respite from the daily routines, and opportunities for celebration. In 1917, the church bells rang unexpectedly and, when the peasants gathered, it was the priest who announced that Tsar-Emperor Mykola II had renounced his throne and that now the country would be called a republic. The land would now belong to those who worked on it. For the first time in the village, the word "Comrades" was heard – the revolution had begun.

At the end of the second book, Maria and Korniy's second son Maksym, returns home as a re-born Bolshevik, and thinks nothing of shooting an ornate Kyivan icon the moment he walks into the house. Maria, his mother, is devastated: "It seemed to her that Maksym had shot her, not the icon…. And from that day on, she was filled with fear." As we read about Maria, we can't help but imagine how many times this scene was replayed throughout Ukraine.

It is only at this point that Maria and Korniy reach a tipping point – circumstances force them to switch their attention from farming to the implications of the new political reality. Korniy correctly analyzes the psyche of the Comrades: "Those who sow death cannot let others live." After announcing that he will not join the commune, Maria asks, "Do you think that we'll actually be sentenced?"

They were not sentenced; instead, every kernel of grain was plucked from their lives. Korniy had assessed the situation correctly - "They don't need either communes or NEP (New Economic Policy). They need power, they want to find ways to dominate, they have plans to take over the world ….". The Ukrainian people stood in the way of those plans and this precipitated the famine-genocide of 1932-1933.

The ultimate irony depicted in this book and, in the fate of the Ukrainian people, is that as they lay starving in their homes, unable to walk, unable to function, unable to live their lives of simple sustenance, their beloved churches, which played such an integral role throughout their lives, were desecrated and ultimately used as storage bins for the grain which they were denied.

2013 marked the 80th anniversary of the Holodomor. The onus is on us, as Ukrainians, to raise awareness. One of the ways in which this can be done is by making all Canadians aware of Samchuk's book, Maria. This is a book which needs to be read and then shared and discussed. It has a place in the library of every Ukrainian. Reviews can be submitted for publication in both print and on-line media; the book can also be sent to journalists for review. Events can be organized at Institutes and libraries to feature either readings of the book or speakers to discuss the book; Maria can be made available at Holodomor commemorations; school boards can be asked to include Maria in their curriculum for Holodomor studies – the possibilities are endless.

We can ensure that the victims of the Holodomor will not have died in vain. As we pause and reflect about this atrocity in our collective Ukrainian past, let us think of and pray for all of the Marias, for all of the mothers and their families who died of hunger during the famine-genocide in 1932-33.

Vichnaya Pamyat

Note: Maria was skilfully and adeptly translated by Roma Franko whose passion for providing quality Ukrainian literature in English translation is paramount in her life. Our deepest gratitude to her for undertaking this colossal task, first in partnership with her sister, the late Sonia Morris (nee Stratychuk), and now in partnership with her nephew, Paul Cipywnyk. Books can be ordered directly through their website: www.languagelanterns.com by clicking on the Order link; alternatively, contact Language Lanterns Publications Inc. at 2 Whitecroft Place, Toronto, ON, M9A 4T2.

Strawberry Fields by Marina Lewycka

Published by Penguin, May 6, 2008
ISBN-10: 0143055151
ISBN-13: 978-0143055150
320 pages

Summary

On an idyllic patch of English countryside a handful of migrant workers spend their days picking strawberries and dreaming of a better life, and their nights in two tiny trailer homes — one for men and one for women. All is harmonious in this cozy vale until Farmer Leaping’s wife comes upon him and the berrypicking boss, Yola, in a compromising position. Fury ensues, the police are called, and the migrant workers pile into one of the trailer homes and hightail it out of their little Arcadia, setting off on one of the most enchanting, merry, and moving picaresque journeys since Chaucer’s pilgrims set off to Canterbury.
Source: http://www.amazon.ca/Strawberry-Fields-Marina-Lewycka/dp/0143055151/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1445298003&sr=1-2

Under this Unbroken Sky by Shandi Mitchell

Published by George Weidenfeld & Nicholson, October 1, 2009
ISBN: 0297856588  

ISBN13: 9780297856580

354 pages

Summary

Spring 1938. After nearly two years in prison for the crime of stealing his own grain, Ukrainian immigrant Teodor Mykolayenko is a free man. While he was gone, his wife, Maria; their five children; and his sister, Anna, struggled to survive on the harsh northern Canadian prairie, but now Teodor—a man who has overcome drought, starvation, and Stalin's purges—is determined to make a better life for them. As he tirelessly clears the untamed land, Teodor begins to heal himself and his children. But the family's hopes and newfound happiness are short-lived. Anna's rogue husband, the arrogant and scheming Stefan, unexpectedly returns, stirring up rancor and discord that will end in violence and tragedy.

Under This Unbroken Sky is a mesmerizing tale of love and greed, pride and desperation, that will resonate long after the last page is turned. Shandi Mitchell has woven an unbearably suspenseful story, written in a language of luminous beauty and clarity. Rich with fiery conflict and culminating in a gut-wrenching climax, this is an unforgettably powerful novel from a passionate new voice in contemporary literature.

Source: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6050969-under-this-unbroken-sky