Ivan and Phoebe - by Oksana Lutsyshyna (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Spanning several years of political and relational strife, Ivan and Phoebe closely follows a young man's experience coming of age during the climax of the Ukrainian revolution.

Ivan is a recent college graduate eager to leave behind his involvement in student protests against the Soviet government in 1990s Ukraine. Tired and battered, he returns to his hometown in hopes of finding solace in the comforting familiarity of Uzhgorod; however, the emotional baggage of leaving the revolution weighs heavily upon him. Phoebe is a staunch feminist and aspiring poet. Growing up in a family intent on silencing her voice, she channels her pain through writing. When the pair meet, they fall in love and eventually into a loveless marriage. The fractured relationship presented in Ivan and Phoebe mirrors the complex political climate of late 20th-century Ukraine.

About the Author

Oksana Lutsyshyna is a Ukrainian writer, translator, and poet, author of three novels, a collection of short stories, and five books of poetry. For her latest novel, Ivan and Phoebe, she was awarded the Lviv City of Literature UNESCO Prize (2020) and the Taras Shevchenko National Award in fiction (2021). She holds a PhD in Comparative Literature and is currently an Assistant Professor of Instruction in Ukrainian Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, where she teaches the Ukrainian language and Eastern European literatures in translation.

Nina Murray is a Ukrainian-American poet and translator. She is the author of the poetry collections Glapthorn Circular (LiveCanon Poetry, 2023) and Alcestis in the Underworld (Circling Rivers Press, 2019) as well as several chapbooks. She is a retired U.S. Diplomat and currently the director of the Connect Program at Razom for Ukraine.