July 31, 2025

Ukrainian Artist Honored


Ukrainian Artist Honored
Serhiy Zhadan in Concert Mariusz Kubik, Wikimedia Commons

On July 25, Serhiy Zhadan became the first Ukrainian author to receive the Austrian State Prize in European Literature. Zhadan joins a list of past winners that includes highly acclaimed European authors like Zadie Smith, John Banville, and Salman Rushdie. When presenting the award, Austrian Vice Chancellor Andreas Babler described Zhadan as “one of the most incisive writers of contemporary European literature, who has become the literary voice of Ukrainians.”

This award comes in the wake of not only a rich literary career, but a remarkable life. Zhadan began his career at the age of 17, when, in 1991, he began to publish poetry. In the same year, Ukraine declared its independence following the collapse of the Soviet Union.

In the three decades since, Zhadan has written numerous novels and collections of poetry drawing on his connection to his home country and his experiences during war. He has previously won the Hannah Arendt Prize for Political Thought, the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade, and twice been awarded with BBC Ukraine’s Book of the Year.

Zhadan’s life behind his literary career is as remarkable as his novels. He is the frontman to the Kharkiv band Zhadan and the Dogs, and since the Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in 2022, he has toured with the group, playing live concerts and raising money for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Zhadan’s involvement in the war did not stop at fundraising. In 2024, the 50-year-old author enlisted at a National Guard brigade in Kharkiv. He told the Kyiv Independent newspaper, “It seems to me that today there are no writers or non-writers, musicians or non-musicians – there are citizens of Ukraine who feel responsible for their country.”

Zhadan has spent a lifetime participating in, observing, and recording Ukraine’s struggle for independence. The Austrian State Prize in European Literature celebrates the entirety of his career, throughout which he has become a voice of the Ukrainian people. His most recent work, “How Fire Descends,” is a collection of poetry published in 2023. The book was described by Yale University Press as “an homage to the Ukrainian people,” the latest of Zhadan’s projects aimed at capturing a Ukrainian perspective on the war and sustaining hope.

You Might Also Like

No More Summers in Turkey?
  • July 16, 2025

No More Summers in Turkey?

Pro-war bloggers are calling for a boycott of vacations in Turkey after it joined a drone coalition to aid Ukraine.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

White Magic
June 01, 2021

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.

Moscow and Muscovites
November 26, 2013

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 

The Little Humpbacked Horse
November 03, 2014

The Little Humpbacked Horse

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.

A Taste of Russia
November 01, 2012

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.

Survival Russian
February 01, 2009

Survival Russian

Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers’ understanding of Russian language and culture. This enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes over 90 essays and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words.

Woe From Wit (bilingual)
June 20, 2017

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.

Driving Down Russia's Spine
June 01, 2016

Driving Down Russia's Spine

The story of the epic Spine of Russia trip, intertwining fascinating subject profiles with digressions into historical and cultural themes relevant to understanding modern Russia. 

93 Untranslatable Russian Words
December 01, 2008

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.

About Us

Russian Life is the 31-year-old publication of an award-winning publishing house that also creates books, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955