Kyiv’s International Arsenal Book Festival rebounded strongly in 2024, drawing 35,000 visitors to its historic venue – a 19th-century arsenal in the Kyiv City Center. The event, running since 2011, featured over 160 literary gatherings from 30 May to 2 June.
This marks significant growth from 28,000 attendees in 2023, following a war-induced pause in 2022. Pre-war, the festival showcased 150+ Ukrainian publishers and 500+ global writers.
The queue to this year’s Arsenal stretched up to 400 meters at times amid security checks but moved quite fast.
On the last evening of the festival, the musical and poetic event “Opus Doloris. Many Voices” is dedicated to the Ukrainian writers who died as a result of Russian aggression: Victoria Amelina, Hlib Babych, Volodymyr Vakulenko, Oleh Kliufas, Maksym Kryvtsov, Ihor Mysiak, Ilia Chernilevskyi.
Ukrainian singer Vivienne Mort earlier dedicated one of her songs to Maksym Kryvtsov, “Don’t you come in here,” using the words from his verse. (Eng subs available:)
A stand displaying books destroyed by a Russian missile in Kharkiv became especially meaningful and striking. The burnt books and lingering smell of ash reminded visitors of the ongoing war.
On 23 May 2024, Russia destroyed 50,000 books in its missile attack on the Faktor-Druk printing house in the Osnovyanskyi district of Kharkiv, also destroying the printing house itself. Three S-300 missiles directly hit the workshop and adjacent territory. This attack demonstrates that Russia wages war not only against Ukrainian people but also against Ukrainian culture and language.
The Arsenal presented numerous books by Ukrainian writers who joined the Armed Forces. Some of the panels were dedicated entirely to Ukrainian soldiers.
Some of the authors could only join online from the frontline areas.
Azov Brigade had its special stand while numerous servicemen were among visitors.
Over 100 public presentations and discussions took place during the Arsenal, including one dedicated to poems by Ukrainian writers about those in captivity.
As one of the visitors told Euromaidan Press, this year’s Book Arsenal is “the celebration of life.”
The Arsenal also hosted numerous exhibitions, mostly dedicated to the ongoing war.
Naїve Ukrainian Gardens — a documentary project by Serhiy Polezhaka, where he depicts the Russian-Ukrainian war through photographs of destroyed houses and gardens throughout Ukraine. He considers the garden as a symbol of Ukrainian society and its values. The Naїve Ukrainian Gardens series is part of the Ukrainian Warchive photo book 13 Stories of War, which brings together 13 visual essays by Ukrainian photographers in response to the full-scale war.
The International Arsenal Book Festival featured a dedicated children’s program, offering both literature and activities tailored for young readers.
“Life on the Edge” was the title of one of the panels.
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