Andrey Kurkov's urgent humane and unforgettable war diaries continue in a poignant personal
account of life under siege in Ukraine - rich with humanity dark humour and unforgettable
glimpses of resilience amidst devastation. ***NEWLY UPDATED FOR PAPERBACK*** 'A vivid
moving and sometimes funny account of the reality of life during Russia's invasion' Marc
Bennetts The Times 'Uplifting and utterly defiant' Matt Nixson Daily Express 'No one with
the slightest interest in this war or the nation on which it is being waged should fail to
read Andrey Kurkov' Dominic Lawson Daily Mail ____ Andrey Kurkov's war diaries continue: A
profound and deeply personal chronicle of life under siege - newly updated! In this second
volume of his acclaimed war diaries Ukraine's greatest living writer bears witness to a nation
enduring the unendurable. From his home in Kyiv Kurkov captures the surreal and the
life-shattering: children learning algebra in metro stations turned bomb shelters
holidaymakers sunbathing on mined beaches and farmers sowing fields shadowed by missile
strikes. On its eastern borders Ukrainian citizens are put into "filtration camps" en route
to Russia ... or to execution. To the north Belarusian forces press refugees into service as
mine detectors. This is a lived account - rich with startling vignettes dark humour and
devastating detail - of a country adapting resisting surviving. A child downloads movies to a
smartphone to watch during nightly power cuts. An elderly Japanese man feeds the hungry in
Kharkiv. A soldier carefully rehomes a swarm of bees. A winemaker uses scrap wooden shell
crates to package gift sets. A Ukrainian gunner inscribes messages on shells and rockets aimed
for Russia: "For Bakhmut" he writes. The family of a journalist killed in the Donbas sells
their home to open a bookshop in his memory. Our Daily War is Kurkov at his most intimate and
insightful: a record of resilience heartbreak and fierce national pride. Urgent humane
unforgettable this is history as it happens and as only Kurkov can write it. _____ PRAISE
FOR ANDREY KURKOV'S WAR DIARIES 'Clever passionate' Roger Boyes The Times 'Thoughtfulness
nearly always prevails over anger the pieces are flawlessly structured the tone is devoid of
self-pity' Robin Ashenden Spectator 'Andrey Kurkov [is] one of the most articulate
ambassadors to the West for the situation in his homeland' Sam Leith Spectator 'Immediate
and important. . . An insider's account of how an ordinary life became extraordinary. It is
also about survival hope and humanity' Helen Davies Sunday Times 'Packed with surprising
details about the human effects of the Russian assault ... genial but also impassioned never
more so than when deploring Putin's efforts to erase Ukrainian culture and history' Blake
Morrison Guardian 'A thoughtful and humane memoir by one of Ukraine's most prominent living
authors' Simon Caterson Sydney Morning Herald 'Kurkov's diaries ... make the early days of
the war vivid for the reader. ... Here are the kind of stories you don't see on the television
news' Rachel Cooke Observer 'It is little wonder ... Kurkov known for his keen eye for the
absurdities of life would pack his diary of the war with fascinating and eccentric details'
Megan Gibson New Statesman 'Kurkov an internationally-lauded novelist is strongest when he
writes on cultural matters. And this he demonstrates convincingly is a cultural war' Ed
O'Loughlin Irish Times 'With the sort of eye-witness detail missing from even the most
rigorous newspaper account this book makes for essential reading' Claire Allfree Metro
