Ukrainian poets take part in Book World festival in Prague

Ukrainian poets met with readers at the Book World literary festival held in Prague as part of the International Book Fair.

An Ukrinform correspondent reports this.

The event was organized by the Czech publishing house Větrné mlýny from the city of Brno, which publishes poetry collections by Ukrainian authors in Czech. Among the poets whose works are published by the company are Kateryna Kalytko, Daryna Hladun, Ella Yevtushenko, Marianna Kiyanovska, Anna Gruver, and Oksana Stomina.

The poets read their works, including in Czech. Natalkа Marynchak was unable to attend the event, but her poetry was also presented there.

The authors spoke about how the war, ongoing since 2014, has influenced their creative activity. During the war, interest in Ukrainian literature has grown significantly, and poetry helps the world better understand Ukrainians and their emotions. They also discussed how poets today bear the terrible responsibility of speaking for those who no longer can.

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Oksana Stomina, whose husband – a defender of Azovstal – returned home in the latest prisoner exchange after four years in captivity, used the festival platform to once again draw attention to Russia’s illegal detention of Ukrainian military personnel and civilians.

It should be noted that five Ukrainian poetry collections have already been published in the Czech Republic, with the number expected to rise to nine by autumn.

As reported, the International Book Fair was held in Prague with Ukraine taking part in the event.