Despite the fact that Ukrainian books and the national publishing industry are not supported by the state, our newspaper remains loyal to its tradition and has been publishing one book per year. This year’s publishing forum in Lviv familiarized the Ukrainian reading public — particularly book lovers from Lviv — with The Day and Eternity of James Mace and The Apocrypha of Klara Gudzyk, the fourth and fifth publications in The Day’s Library Series. The series was launched in 2002, when Ukraine Incognita came off the presses; it was followed by Dvi Rusi in 2003, and a year later by Wars and Peace.
The Day and Eternity of James Mace, published in Ukrainian and English, is a tribute to the outstanding American scholar, journalist, professor, and translator named James Mace, who told the world the hair-raising truth about the Holodomor in Ukraine. He was appointed executive director of the US Commission on the Ukraine Famine. He settled in Kyiv in the early 1990s, where he worked as The Day’s English language consultant in 1998-2004. The book contains Mace’s articles on the famine of the 1930s, Ukrainian history, and literature, as well as reminiscences about Dr. Mace, contributed by Kateryna Yushchenko, Stanislav Kulchytsky, Volodymyr Panchenko, Oxana Pachliovska, Viacheslav Briukhovetsky, Yevhen Sverstiuk, and Yuriy Shcherbak.
Apocrypha is a compilation of articles by The Day’s noted journalist Klara Gudzyk. Although she is rightfully considered an expert on Ukrainian religious issues, her readers know that she is also well versed in history, philosophy, and the arts. The book contains one-fifth of what Klara Gudzyk has written for The Day during the nine years of its existence, including her well-known Friday columns, interviews, and travel impressions.
Subscribers, supporters, and friends of The Day gathered at Potocki Palace in Lviv to attend the ceremony launching the newest publications. “The publication of these two books marks an important event for us,” noted Larysa, Ivshyna, the editor in chief, who added that the “journalists and staff members of this newspaper treated The Day and Eternity of James Mace with special care; they paid for the publication of Dr. Mace’s columns, articles, and commemorative features. It was our duty. This is our memory. We wanted to underline the fact that Ukrainians know how to express their gratitude. The great American James Mace was a true patriot of Ukraine. After his and Robert Conquest’s reports on the Ukrainian Holodomor to the US Congress, no one can say in all conscience that there was no famine. I believe that our book is particularly topical now (although this topic has always been topical) especially now that it has been announced that in 2007 Ukraine will again introduce the Holodomor issue and the need to recognize it as an act of genocide.”
“This year we published another book, The Apocrypha of Klara Gudzyk... but while The Day and Eternity of James Mace is about our wounds, the Apocrypha... is about our cures...Spirituality, including Ukrainian culture in the broad European context, is what won Klara Gudzyk her reputation, and not just among Ukrainian intellectuals.”
Below we offer some comments from noted scholars and cultural figures concerning the newest publications in The Day’s Library Series.
Volodymyr ZDOROVEHA, professor, Ivan Franko National University, Lviv:
The publication of the book The Day and Eternity of James Mace is a significant event. For centuries Ukrainians were forced to serve foreigners. Ivan Franko has a collection of articles entitled “Hired by Neighbors.” Moreover, we gave our intellect and talent over to other nations. Some foreigners would join us; it is an irreversible process. Unfortunately, except for Dr. Mace, we have never had a case where an individual with a non-Slavic mentality dedicated himself to Ukraine. I say that James Mace was a great Ukrainian American. This book is another significant effort aimed at convincing the international community that the Holodomor was an act of genocide.
Kostiantyn CHAVAHA, correspondent, Radio Vatican and CAI (Catholic news agency in Poland):
I bought a copy of The Apocrypha of Klara Gudzyk shortly before the launch and I have already read it. This is an exceptional book, like the newspaper The Day, in that both are trying, in an unbiased manner, to reflect the lives of the different churches and religious organizations operating in present-day Ukraine and beyond its borders. The author, who is deeply concerned about the divisions within the Orthodox community of Ukraine, tries to familiarize the reader with the spiritual values of her fellow citizens from other confessions.
Apocrypha... is meant to overcome prejudice and negative stereotypes that result from lack of information, and which are still predominant among certain categories of the population in Ukraine’s east and west.
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The Day would like to thank everyone who attended the launch; special thanks to Oksana, our guide at the Potocki Palace, who helped with the book display.
