Bloomsbury announced that it will publish a moving diary of a 12-year-old Ukrainian girl, Yeva Skalietska, drafting her journey with her grandmother from war-torn Kharkiv to a safe Dublin.
The reflections of a 12-year-old refugee from the Russian invasion of Ukraine will be published this fall. She has penned everything in her personal diary. Skalietska’s book is called “You Don’t Know What War Is: The Diary of a Young Girl from Ukraine.” Union Square & Co. will release her account on Oct. 25.
“Everyone knows what the word ‘war’ means, but practically no one knows what this word really represents,” Skalietska said in a statement released Wednesday. “I want the world to know what we have experienced.”
Details about her Diary
Skalietska’s book begins with her 12th birthday, shortly before the Russians attacked on Feb. 24. She had been living in Kharkiv with her grandmother when the bombing began. Notably, Yeva’s parents separated when she was a baby, and her grandmother raised her.
“She describes the bombings they endured while sheltering underground and their desperate journey to West Ukraine. She shares her confusion about why the Russians would attack them since she speaks Russian and follows many of their customs,” according to Union Square’s announcement.
“After many endless train rides and a prolonged stay in an overcrowded refugee center in Hungary; because several countries in Europe refused them entry; Yeva and her beloved grandmother eventually find refuge in Dublin. There she bravely begins to forge a new life; hoping she’ll be able to return home one day,” the publisher said.
