Book description
A devastating story of the struggle of civilians caught up in the conflict in eastern Ukraine
Chosen as one of "Six Books to Read for Context on Ukraine" by the New York Times
Selected by Publishers Weekly as one of the "20 Best Books of 2021"
"Powerful . . .…
Why read it?
1 author picked The Orphanage as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
Pasha’s quest is to bring his nephew home from an orphanage. But this is eastern Ukraine and he must navigate the Gray Zone, a landscape of threat, death, and shifting languages, lines, and loyalties.
With the people he meets along the way, he shares hardship and suffering and, at times, personal animosity while there’s no predicting who will meet with sudden death. Zhadan’s powerful novel isn’t just topical. He plunged me into the reality of civilians in wartime in an astounding work I won’t soon forget. I am grateful to the translators.
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