The Memory Keeper of Kyiv: The most powerful, important historical novel of 2022

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The thing really impressing me was the resilience and strength the characters show through adversity. I strongly encourage you to read this book about Ukraine as a book club. As you know, history repeats itself and the parallels of the historical events in the novel to current events is harrowing. A compelling and intimate story of love and survival. Harrowing and haunting . . . yet, at the same time, it is sensitive, beautiful and inspiring. Everybody should read this story, especially now. I cannot recommend it highly enough." Christy Lefteri, author of The Beekeeper of Aleppo

Dochters van Kiev' is een zeer meeslepend, emotioneel en heftig verhaal. En het is zo verdrietig dat dit land en zijn bewoners nu weer iets verschrikkelijks meemaakt... Ik zou dit boek zeker op je lijstje zetten om te lezen! A stunning portrait of Ukraine and its people, of strength, of endurance, of the fight for survival during the forced famine, the Holodomor, but also a tender story of Katya, a grandmother whose hidden history holds the power to guide her granddaughter through the darkness of loss and grief, toward life and a limitless future. A remarkable read not to be missed." Note: If you are in a depressed state of mind, please stay away from the book until you are in a stronger mental headspace. There are many triggering events in the 1930s timeline. While most of the extreme triggers aren’t detailed out directly, what’s happening behind the screen is enough to induce nightmares.I suppose that the story of the past did have me a little more hooked than the present day. That I suppose is often the fault of dual timelines. Yet, it was a richly researched novel that I haven't stopped talking about. I cannot wait to read the author's next novel. The contemporary timeline, while interesting, is very drab in comparison to the past story. It is too predictable. The characters are pretty one-dimensional. I also found it very farfetched that Cassie’s family, especially her mom, knew zilch about their Ukrainian heritage. Cassie seemed quite incapable of understanding even the most obvious of connections while the rest of us could decode the clues from a mile away. Katya’s guilt is a major theme of the book. What do you think she felt the most guilty for–causing Alina’s death, marrying Alina’s husband, or losing Halya? This is a story of the resilience of the human spirit, the love that sees us through our darkest hours, and the true horror of what happened during the Holodomor. It is but obvious to connect this book with the situation in Ukraine right now. It is quite surreal, almost absurd that this book has come out in a year where history seems to be repeating itself. Wonder when leaders will learn from past mistakes and focus more on living in harmony than on satisfying their hunger for more power and control.

As the granddaughter of a Ukrainian refugee from WW2, the poignancy of this war devastates me. While we can’t change history, we can all learn from it and do something to help the Ukrainian people today. I’m so pleased that my publisher, Boldwood Books, is donating a share of the proceeds of this novel to DEC Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal. I couldn’t be happier to be a part of that effort. Publishing is a business with a years-long trajectory, so when a book comes out with subject matter that coincides with current events, it feels propitious. Inspired by her great-grandmother’s story, Erin Litteken decided to write a novel based on her life in Ukraine before and after World War II. She had no idea the book would be published just as Ukraine fell into crisis once again. As the world admires the strength of the Ukrainian people, The Memory Keeper of Kyiv highlights the roots of that strength. After escaping to America, Katya and Koyla never speak of the Holodomor. How do you think that affected Anna and Cassie’s lives?

Christmas Gifts

The characters in The Memory Keeper of Kyiv are complex and authentic. They deal with their various emotional traumas in different ways but survive. Katya is particularly endearing because the onset of dementia releases long-suppressed memories of the Holodomor. Like Shari J. Ryan, Erin Litteken neither dwells on the atrocities or sensationalizes them, but describes them matter-of-factly. Denk ich an Kiew" von Erin Litteken - eine Geschichte, die nicht nur durch die Thematik sehr bewegend ist, sondern auch durch den Erscheinungstermin... My thanks to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the DRC of “The Memory Keeper of Kyiv”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book. Ukraine is fertile and plentiful, and Stalin thinks we should be the breadbasket of the Soviet Union. To achieve that, he wants us to give up our land and join collective farms. This has been going on in villages all across Ukraine for months, and they could arrive here at any time.” Each of the characters in this story come to life vividly, and I felt like I was right beside them watching each of the horrors they faced. The storyline flows beautifully between past and present leaving a book you can't put down. I can't wait to see what is yet to come in the way of stories from this debut author.