Diaries of War

An account of two lives during the war in Ukraine: one Ukrainian, one Russian, by the internationally bestselling author of Heimat

Diaries of War is a magnificent feat of witness' Alison Bechdel

'Nora Krug's narrative can emotionally drain the reader, but the reader is unlikely to ever forget this book' Andrey Kurkov


Immediately following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Nora Krug connected with two anonymous subjects - 'K.', a Ukrainian journalist, and 'D.', a Russian artist - and began what would become a year of correspondence. Deeply moved by the rawness of their responses, she felt that through the personal accounts of these individuals who, directly and indirectly, experienced the war firsthand, she might be able to communicate something of the war and its human impact. Over the course of the next twelve months she communicated with each of them individually via phone chat, condensing their sometimes fluid, sometimes fragmentary answers into a consistent narrative and then created illustrations to go with each entry. The personal accounts contained in this book chronicle the first year of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in an intimate, epistolary format.

Diaries of War explores the personal, the political, conflict, family and daily life under war with immense skill, compassion and moving thoughtfulness. Through these two individuals we see the granular effects of war on two lives, but they are emblematic of millions. Diaries of War is a harrowing record of a heart-wrenching historical event that has devastated the world and continues to alter countless lives.

Reviews

Growing up as a Jew in Nazi-occupied Hungary, being a victim of war was a fact of life. Diaries of War touches me very personally