Many years after making his way to America from Odessa in Soviet Ukraine, Emil Draitser made a startling discovery: every time he uttered the word “Jewish”—even in casual conversation—he lowered his voice. This compelling memoir conveys the reader back to Draitser’s childhood and provides a unique account of midtwentieth-century life in Russia as the young Draitser struggles to reconcile the harsh values of Soviet society with the values of his working-class Jewish family. Lively, evocative, and rich with humor, this unforgettable story ends with the death of Stalin and, through life stories of the author’s ancestors, presents a sweeping panorama of two centuries of Jewish history in Russia. Издание на русском: «Кто ты такой: Одесса 1945-1953 гг.»
A new book of poems by Nina Kossman. “When the mythological and personal meet, something transforms for this reader…” -Ilya Kaminsky
From the myths of the ancient Near East to the secluded palaces of forgotten empires, Harems: Origins and Eunuchs uncovers how the idea of the harem first emerged — not only as a symbol of power and beauty, but also as a reflection of human desire, faith, and control. With the precision of a historian and the sensitivity of a storyteller, Sergii Mazurkevych traces the hidden world of eunuchs, devotion, and intrigue that shaped entire civilizations. A thoughtful and visually rich journey into one of history’s most secret institutions.
This excellent anthology, compiled and edited by Julia Nemirovskaya, showcases poems by Russian (and Russian-speaking) poets who express their absolute rejection of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The documentary novel “The Tenth Circle” tells the story of the life, struggle, and destruction of the Minsk ghetto, one of the largest in the Soviet Union and Europe during World War II. (Russian edition)
This collection focuses on the war between Russia and Ukraine as seen by Russophone poets from all over the world.