Fire River Poets present an evening that bears witness to the richness, heritage and vitality of Ukrainian Poetry.
Wednesday 19th November
6.30pm
Brendon Books, Taunton
Since the Russian invasion of February 2022 there has been a renaissance of poetry in Ukraine. A population under daily bombardment has turned to creative expression, especially the craft of the spoken word, to process their suffering, to stiffen the courage of resistance and to gain solace from shared humanity in a world turned upside down.
Drawing from a wide range of Ukrainian poetry in translation the evening also features original responses to these poems from Fire River Poets, plus actual poetry performed by Ukrainian speakers.
We will also present some poetic memories of Kyiv and Odessa and hear poems read by members of Taunton’s Ukrainian community in both English and their mother tongue.
Join us for a moving and powerful evening that will testify to the abiding strength of poetry, an art form that grows in meaning under the utmost pressure.
Oksana Maksymchuk: Rocket in the Room
what the rocket has in common
with the room full of children
is its current location
somebody thought the rocket
belonged in the room with the children
and now it’s here
Hordienko: ‘The extreme condition of the mind – when you accept that apocalypse is inevitable – that’s when thoughts appear in your head that were impossible before. When you can describe the hardest thing you went through it means you can survive it. Keeping silent about something – it kills you from within.’
Chornohuz: To express the sharp truth about our existence is actually deadly for our enemies who are building this absolutely horrible world inside Russia. To write poetry that expresses the truth is dangerous for them.’