A ceremony of honoring the laureates of the 16th Ukrainian Book of the Year 2014 took place in Kyiv. The contest was organized by Elit-Profi Center for Ranking Research and Taras Shevchenko Institute of Literature at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. Winners were determined in seven nominations (“Chrestomathy,” “Fine Writing,” “Sofia,” “The Past,” “Horizons,” “Children’s Holiday,” “Business Card”), each of which had several sub-nominations. Over 70 critics, journalists, historians, philosophers, art historians created the rating’s shortlists during the 4-day-long expert session. In general, 919 publications were evaluated within the framework of the contest, and books by 66 publishing houses from 8 Ukrainian cities were included to shortlists.
The Grand Prix of the Book of the Year 2014 was given to Stanislav Kulchytsky for scientific research The Red Challenge. The History of Communism in Ukraine from its Birth to Death. According to the author, the jury’s decision was stipulated by the relevancy of the topic. “We started pulling out of communism in 1991, but in such a feeble way that there still are cities in Ukraine called Dniprodzerzhynsk or Kirovohrad,” Kulchytsky says. “What is the danger of those remnants of the Soviet era? One of the aspects is that such social order turned out to be convenient for many. Communism slowly enslaves a person, makes them obey the state in everything. Not only law-enforcement bodies, but such phenomena as squealers and anonymous letters played an important role in this.
DEN’S EDITORIAL STAFF DELEGATED KATERYNA MELNYCHUK, MANAGER FOR DEVELOPMENT AND PUBLIC RELATIONS, TO RECEIVE THE DIPLOMA AT THE CEREMONY
The state knew everything about its subjects’ personal life and thoughts. On the other hand, the state took care of everyone, for example, provided apartments and the minimal level of welfare. This Soviet paternalism is vividly depicted in the film The Irony of Fate. It is no wonder that many still remember that period with nostalgia. Besides communism, we must also pull away from the Russian people, since until recently many in our country thought of it as of practically identical to Ukrainians. For this we first of all have to study and bring our own history back, which Russia has appropriated (from the times of historians Tatishchev and Karamzin). In relation to this, I cannot but welcome an initiative by Den’s editorial staff to announce 2015 the Year of Yaroslav the Wise.”
“I THINK THAT I RECEIVED THE AWARD THANKS TO THE RELEVANCY OF THE SUBJECT IN THE FIRST PLACE. TODAY WE HAVE TO STUDY AND BRING OUR OWN HISTORY BACK,” STANISLAV KULCHYTSKY COMMENTS ON HIS VICTORY
Out of the publications by Den’s Library, the jury awarded the photo album People of the Maidan. A Chronicle. It won in the nomination “Horizons” (sub-nomination “Ukrainian Journalism. Contemporary Memoirs”). Within this nomination, the contest experts viewed the issues which, according to them, open new horizons of knowledge to readers and form the perception of the world. “I consider this award to be well-deserved,” says president of the Ukrainian Publishers and Booksellers Association Oleksandr Afonin, who was one of the experts in the “Horizons” nomination. “In my opinion, the subjective perception of the expert council in this case led to a rather objective assessment. High qualification and serious approach to the content, as well as to form, is always noticeable in publications by Den’s Library. One can sense the sophisticated professionalism of people who definitely know what they are doing and what for. This is what many publishers lack nowadays.
