Your Presence Is Mandatory
Sharply observed ... A gratifyingly specific portrait of a Jewish Ukrainian whose plight reflects that of his native country ... Occasionally, Vasilyuk babies the reader ... Happily, this doesn’t happen too often.
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While the author doesn’t shy away from naturalistic descriptions of violence and death, she doesn’t linger over horrors unnecessarily, either. Her tone is matter-of-fact and unflinching ... Through meticulous attention to specifics and empathetic, searching characterization, Vasilyuk achieves a sense of historical and emotional authenticity—thereby offering her readers a compelling exploration of both the distant past and more recent events.
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Full of devastating pathos and elucidation of how war and, especially, fascist and communist mindsets destroy one’s humanity, this timely novel is a robust addition to the growing body of literature chronicling the Ukrainian experience.
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