In the recent years, Ukraine’s book market has demonstrated business activity, creativity and quality upgrade – Ukrainian publishers and book traders try to use the recession for quality changes and catch up with the numbers they had in 2013-2014. As the result of the cultural and political situation that emerged after Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, Ukrainian books found themselves in a winning position: they have become more attractive for the consumer in terms of image and commerce and more profitable for the publishers, who have been contributing more and more actively in the formation of Ukraine’s own market, avoiding the competition with Russian books in the Russian language section.

The emergence of new publishers on the market is the strong indicator of its development. These are not just small publishers, but medium and big ones as well, ready to compete for the reader with the market leaders both in the segments of books written in Ukrainian and translated from other languages.

The first steps within the context of publishing management reform have been made with the emergence of the Ukrainian Book Institute at the end of 2016; the demand for analytical, statistical information and professional press has increased; the competition for purchase of publishing rights for translations has grown; public discussions concerning the quality of publications, ethics of book business, book aesthetic have peaked; there are increasingly many Ukrainian book competitions and ratings, new book and literature festivals appear; Ukrainian stands have started appearing at international book fairs, while Ukrainian authors, illustrators and publishers continue to collect awards of universal importance. All of that gives us reasons to look into the future of the industry with optimism and to search for new partners and collaboration opportunities.

 

PUBLISHERS PRESENTED AT THE UKRAINIAN STAND

Publishing statistics 2015

In 2015, the number of books published was 19,958, with total print run of 36,409,800. The three top fields by the number of new books in 2015 were political and socioeconomic publications, educational and cultural publications, as well as fiction and folklore. Books on self-education and culture are by far the leader in terms of print runs with 15,213,000 copies. The lowest number of new publications is about sports

Figures on publishing (total)

 

BOOKS:

 

COPIES (‘000):

 

Books and brochures by fields of interest, 2015

 

Top 10 Ukrainian publishers by the number of new books in 2015

Top 10 publishers based on the number of items published

 

Top 10 publishers by print run

 

Geographically, the three leaders in the publishing business are evident: Kyiv, Kharkiv Oblast and Lviv Oblast. The main players on the publishing market are located there. The biggest number of items was published in Kyiv – 6552. Kharkiv Oblast leads by the print run with 15,290,500. The smallest number of books was published in Luhansk Oblast (23, but the military conflict in the Donbas has played a role), Kyiv Oblast (93) and Mykolayiv Oblast (162).

2016

 

Production of publishing products (total as of September 26)

Overall, according to the Central Institute of Bibliography, as of September 26, 2016, 436 more books were published (3.8% up) compared to the same period in 2015. The total print run has grown by 5 million 47 thousand 700 copies (by 29%). At the same time, the number of books and brochures in Ukrainian has increased by 433 titles and the number of their copies has more than doubled (grown by 5 million 157 thousand 400 copies, or by 58.8%) in comparison with the same time in 2015. Publications in Russian have reduced again: by 258 titles (9.7%) and by 550,600 copies (6.9%).

In the geographical context, over 9 months of 2016 the three leaders remain unchanged: the city of Kyiv, Kharkiv Oblast and Lviv Oblast. Kyiv leads by the number of new products again (2484), while Kharkiv Oblast leads by print runs (7,954,900 – in comparison with the data of all 2015).

A-BA-BA-HA-LA-MA-HA
(founded in 1992)

The first privately owned publishing house established in independent Ukraine.
A-BA-BA-HA-LA-MA-HA has been selling and buying rights to publish books to and from many countries worldwide — from Тemplar Publishing in the UK and Alfred A. Knopf in the US to publishers in Australia and South Korea. A range of Chinese publishers have been highly interested in its books as well with License Agreements for nearly 20 books signed.
The internationally acclaimed author Paulo Coelho described A-BA-BA-HA-LA-MA-HA’s The Snow Queen, illustrated by the appraised graphic artist Vladyslav Yerko, as “perhaps one of the most extraordinary children’s books I have ever seen.”
A-BA-BA-HA-LA-MA-HA’s Ukrainian-language editions of the last three books in the Harry Potter series came out before any other translations in the world in exclusive covers designed by the publishing house.

Adress: 1/2 Baseina St., Kyiv, Ukraine, 01004
ababahalamaha.com.ua
Rights coordinator: Taras Malkovych, tmalkovych@gmail.com
+380 50 355 04 77

 

ADEF Company Group
(founded in 1995)

The publishing house releases about 30 books a year.
ADEF Company Group includes a design studio, a publishing house, printing and digital production, and book distribution. It specializes in history, religion, and biographies of famous people. The publishing house cooperates with museums, historical foundations, document archives, personal archives; it also conducts research expeditions to obtain objective information when preparing the publications.

Address: 32 Khmelnytskoho St., office 40, Kyiv, Ukraine, 01030
adef.com.ua

Rights coordinator:m4@adef.com.ua
+380 44 284 08 57,
+380 50 4628145

Apriori Publishing House
(founded in 2002)

Established in August 2002 in Lviv, the publishing house has since been working in virtually every segment of the Ukraine’s book market. It publishes fiction, sci-fi, ethnographic literature, children’s books, as well as books on culture, art, religion, and reference literature. The number of new books published annually is over 100. Some of the most popular products include souvenir books about Lviv by Yuriy Nykolyshyn, and new books for children from Vasyl Shkliar and Taras Bereza in two languages.

Address: 2 Katedralna Ploshcha, of. 4, 79000, Lviv, Ukraine
www.apriori.lviv.ua
Rights coordinator: Yuriy Nykolyshyn apriori.knyga@gmail.com

 

Artbooks Publishing House
(founded in 2015 )

A new small publisher, ARTBOOKS has produced around 15 books this year. It specializes in books for children of pre-school age, but plans to expand from baby books to novels for young adults.
ARTBOOKS books emerge in ideas and are created by editors, writers and designers in our offices in Kyiv, but the publisher has also made books illustrated by artists and writers worldwide. The team believes that the way the house works makes its books stand out amongst other children’s books, and that is what makes them so well-loved.

Rights coordinator: Maryna Malyarchuk, +380-67-862-88-92, +380-50-507-21-89
Anna Pohlebaeva, book@artbooks.com.ua, +380-67-288-33-88

 

Atlant UMS Publishing
(since 1997)

The publisher has produced hundreds of books, magazines on medicine, science and art. In the field of art, over 500 booklets, catalogues, and albums of contemporary Ukrainian artists have been published. Its central project in 2002 was a major publication Decorative Art of the Late 20th Century Ukraine. 200 Names. This was the first presentation of 200 works by the country’s best artists in one book since the regaining of independence. Atlant UMS has published catalogues of works by Anatoliy Kryvolap, Ivan Marchuk, Alexei Vladimirov, Matthew Weisberg, Viktor Ryzhykh, Olexander Suholit and many others. In a joint effort, Atlant UMS and Cultprostir.ua platform present a massive art book for 123 heroes of Ukraine. The collection is titled Ukraine. The Best (www.ukrainethebest.com). The publication has been awarded by the Best Book Forum (of the Publishers’ Forum in Lviv).

Address: 27, Vorovskoho St., Kyiv, 01601

Rights coordinator: komelkovY@yandex.ru, komelkov@bigmir.net

T: (044) 2721671

 

BET LLC
(founded in 2008)

The number of books published annually is 119. These include books and learning materials for children of different age groups: board books and exciting development books with colorful pictures for the youngest readers; captivating learning materials to help comprehensive development of pre-school age children; materials to work with during vacations for school students, and generally all kinds of reference books, encyclopedias, test and workbooks that are necessary for successful studies. Also, BET offers fiction books, including illustrated translations of some top modern bestsellers for children and teenagers. With all of its modern printing equipment, new technologies and all technological processes consolidated at one platform, BET is able to perform orders of any level of sophistication within agreed deadlines.

Address: Olminskoho Str. 17, apt.2, Kharkiv, 61024, Ukraine
bet.kh.ua
books-etc.biz

Rights coordinator: Nargis Gafurova nargis.gafurova@gmail.com

+380504016226,

 

Bohdan Publishing House
(founded in 1996)

Established in Ternopil, the publishing house produces around 360 books a year. Its major activities include publication of fiction for children and teenagers written in Ukrainian and translated from other languages; textbooks and teaching manuals for primary, middle and high schools; dictionaries, reference books and encyclopedias; as well as e-books. The authors include Mykola Vinhranovskyi, Yuriy Illenko, Valeriy Shevchuk, Vlodymyr Rutkivskyi, Andriy Kurkov, Volodymyr Lys, Lesia Romanchuk, Volodymyr Bilinskyi, Maria Chumarna, Oleksandr Vilchynskyi.

Address: 34a Stepana Bandery Ave, Ternopil, Ukraine, 46002
office@bohdan-books.com
bohdan-books.com
bohdan-digital.com

Rights coordinator: Tetiana Budna
t_budna@bohdan-books.com

 

Cartographia Publishing House
(founded in 1944)

The number of books published by the State Research and Production Enterprise Cartographia in a year starts from 100. The publishing house specializes in cartographic products in paper and digital forms.

Address: 54 Popudrenka St., Kyiv, SME-660.02660
ukrmap.com.ua

Rights coordinator:
Oleksandr Maliuk
+380 44 292 4033
admin@ukrmap.com.ua

 

Double A Publishing
(founded in 2016)

Double A Publishing is a platform for online marketing, publishing and copyright that is moving towards the promotion of digital literature, sales of e-books, marketing, as well as provision of statistical and analytical information on e-book sales and interest in them. It is the only aggregator in Ukraine that publishes digital books by Ukrainian authors and publishers on more than thirty e-book online platforms worldwide, including Amazon, iBookstore, Kobo etc.
The platform does not have any restrictions in terms of genres or types of content. Currently, it provides a new opportunity for Ukrainian publishers – copyright-related services. Double A Publishing helps publishers to reach their international partners, overcoming various barriers. This assistance includes services, such as translation of marketing materials, development of advertisement materials (such as book trailers), representation of publishers and authors at international events and online services.

Address: 9v, Lesi Ukrayinky Blvd., 60 Kyiv 01133 Ukraine
Doubleapublishing.com
Rights coordinator: Andrew Afonin
andrew.afonin@gmail.com

 

Dobra Lystivka Charity Fund
(founded in 2014)

Charity Fund Dobra Lystivka raises money through production and sale of unique exclusive charity postcards by famous Ukrainian and international illustrators. All profit from sale goes to rehabilitation programs for disabled children in Ukraine. Over the time the project has been in operation, in addition to the direct purpose – the charity component, Dobra Lystivka has become a leader in mass promotion of Ukrainian and world contemporary art to Ukrainians. The publisher aspires to educate and change the culture of perceiving art, and to inspire moving away from the patterns remaining in Ukraine’s social mindset since Soviet times. Dobra Lystivka’s works with many well-known international authors, including Federico Babina, Conrad Roset (Spain), Takashi Yamamoto and Tetsuhiro Wakabayashi (Japan), Valentina Brostean (Italy), Rado Javor (Slovakia), Tamypu (Vietnam), Jaros?aw Ja?nikowski and Jakub R??alski (Poland), Graham Francoise, Christina Bothwell and Michael Mullan (USA), Ofra Amit (Israel) and many others. The total number exceeds 100 artists from 30 countries, and over 320 varieties of postcards. This list expands every two or three months.

website: http://dobralystivka.com
Rights coordinator: order@dobralystivka.com, tel: +380-67- 2092740

 

Folio Publishers, LTD
(founded in 1989)

Folio publishing house offers about 500 books per year, including fiction, non-fiction, Ukrainian authors and translations, classic and contemporary writers, as well as gift books. Folio has published books by Andriy Kurkov, Yuriy Vynnychuk, Serhiy Zhadan, Andriy Kokotiukha, Gunter Grass, Orhan Pamuk, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Mo Yan, Jo Nesbo, Steig Larsson.

Address: 21a Rymarska St., Kharkiv, 61023
folio.com.ua
Rights coordinator: Ievgen Krasovytskyi, +380 50 344 45 59, foliotrade@gmail.com

 

Agency of Cultural Development

(founded in 2014)

A literature platform for poets and authors, LitMaidanchyk, or Literature Square, is a project from the Agency of Cultural Development NGO. The aim of the project is to enable a start in the world of Ukrainian literature. The Agency holds coaching and training sessions for young authors where they can present their works and receive competent and constructive feedback from professional writers, publishers, coaches.
In March 2015, LitMaidanchyk launched Ukraine’s first competition of short crime stories – Elementary, Sir! As a result, the first book of seventeen short crime stories was published. The second and the third competitions took place in 2016, focusing on horror/psycho/mystique crime stories and historical crime stories respectively. Also, debut books of young authors were published under the project.

Address: 37a, Mykhaila Mishyna St. of. 20
03151, Kyiv, Ukraine
www.lit-md.org
Rights coordinator: Viktoriya Mykhaylova, redaktor@lit-mg.org, vita.my@googlemail.com

 

Lybid Publishing House

(founded in 1835)

Releasing nearly 100 books a year, Lybid is one of the oldest publishing houses in Ukraine. It has been closely connected with the history of the Taras Shevchenko Kyiv University, its academic and science schools, education, as well as the tradition of university book publishing. Today Lybid positions itself on the book market as a publisher of educational, academic, and popular scientific literature. It represents the names of classic Ukrainian authors and their new fiction works, along with books translated from other languages. Lybid specializes in history, philosophy, psychology, culture, the Ukrainian language and literature, natural history, etc. Its authors include Lina Kostenko, Valeriy Shevchuk, humanitarian scholars Ivan Dziuba, Mykola Zhulynsky, Anatoliy Halchynsky, Volodymyr Panchenko; historians Vasyl Ulyanovsky, Iryna Margolina, painter Serhiy Yakutovych and others.

Address: 32 Pushkinska St., Kyiv, Ukraine, 01004

lybid.org.ua

Rights coordinator: Olena Boyko, info@lybid.org.ua

+380 67 209 7157

 

Old Lion Publishing House

(founded in 2001)

Old Lion produces about 80 books a year, including fiction and non-fiction for children, teenagers and adults. From the youngest to the oldest, every reader will find something he or she likes from the Old Lion: board books, fairy tales, poems for kids, stories for schoolchildren, teenage series, exquisite poetry, fascinating novels, atlases and albums of incredible beauty, and even anti-stress coloring books.
Old Lion works with the best Ukrainian and international authors, including Sally Green, Johanna Basford, Francoise Barbe-Gall, Jeremy Strong, Andrzej Stasiuk, Alexandra and Daniel Mizelinski, Agrafka art studio, Patrik Ou?edn?k, Sofia Andrukhovych, and Taras Prokhasko.

Address: 15-A Lemkivska St., Lviv, Ukraine, P.O.B/ 879, 79008

tel./fax: +38 032 240 4798,

starlev.com.ua

Rights coordinator:

Ivan Fedechko, t: +38 097 69 60 703

e: ivan.fedechko@starlev.com.ua

lev@starlev.com.ua

 

Osnovy Publishing

(founded in 1992)

It is constantly developing a new range of books with unique content and design created by Ukrainian authors, designers, and illustrators. Osnovy focuses on looking for creative ways to make books and present them. For that, the publisher teams up with the most avant-garde and offbeat designers, like Lera Sxemka, Polina Doroshenko, Ilya Isupov and Sergiy Maidukov to create masterpieces. Osnovy offers everything—from beautifully crafted coffee tables photography compilations, illustrations for the Criminal Code of Ukraine to a range of children’s books for young discoverers of the huge world and fun travel guides— and the repertoire is continually growing. Osnovy translates and publishes worldwide known authors, including Simone de Beauvoir, Michel Foucault, Bertrand Russel, Norman Davies, John Updike, Seth Grahame-Smith and many others.

Address: Heorhyivsky provulok 7, 3rd floor, Kyiv, Ukraine, 01030
+380 44 331 02 49

osnovypublishing.com

Rights coordinator: Olexandra Kiryanova, olexandrakiryanova@osnovypublishing.com

+380971825936

 

Nebeskey Publishing House

(founded in 2011)

This Ukrainian publishing house specializes in graphic novels, comic books, art and digital multimedia books. Its aim is to revive the Ukrainian cultural heritage through graphic novels and other forms of narrating a story based on historical events. Nebeskey releases 5–10 books of local and foreign authors annually. In the past five years, the company has published the most popular Ukrainian graphic novel “Daogopak”, which was awarded the Book of the Year in Ukraine in 2012.

Address: 89a Melnykova St., Kyiv, Ukraine, 04050
Rights coordinator: Maksym Prasolov, nebeskey@gmail.com

+380 067 5045355

 

Rodovid Press

(founded in 1992)

Over more than 20 years on the market, Rodovid has specialized in art history, contemporary art and Ukrainian heritage. It produces albums, monographs and calendars, as well as the special series on contemporary art in Ukraine. Most of its books are in at least two languages: Ukrainian and English, or French.

Address: 17 Khreschatyk St., office 45, Kyiv, Ukraine, 01001

rodovid.net
Rights coordinator:
Lidia Lykhach
Founder and Director of Rodovid Press

+8(044)279-46- 12

+1 816 699 8796

rodovid2@gmail.com

 

Summit-book
(founded in 1997)

Summit-book is one of the largest publishing houses in Ukraine. More than two hundred of the best book chains cooperate with it in Ukraine and abroad. Summit-book restocks all library collections in Ukraine with books. Some of the authors published at Summit-book include Garry Kasparov, President of Yale University Peter Salovey, as well as Ivan Drach, Anatoly Krym, Alexander Korotko, Les Mudrak, Serg Goodman and many others, both young and well-known writers.
Summit-book organizes literary festivals, poetry and music nights, and other artistic activities to support both beginning and accomplished authors. In Frankfurt, Summit-book is presenting new works by young Ukrainian authors, united in a series called “Library of Happiness”.

Adress: 25 Observatorna St., Kyiv, Ukraine, 04053

sbook.com.ua

Rights coordinator: Ivan Stepurin,sinbook@ukr.net

+38050 352 25 25

Veselka Publishers
(founded in 1934)

Veselka is the most experienced publishing house for children in Ukrane. In over 80 years of work, it has produced more than 10,000 books with the total print run of 1.5 billion. The number of new books published last year is 32. Veselka’s books include classic Ukrainian and world literature for children. It works with the best authors, translators and illustrators. Аmong the most well-known authors published by Veselka are Lina Kostenko, Mykola Vinhranovsky, Dmytro Pavlychko, Oles Honchar, Platon Voronko, Mykhaylo Stelmach, Vsevolod Nestayko, Tamara Kolomiets, Grygir Tyutyunnyk, Victor Blyznetsets.
Address: 63 Melnykova St., Kyiv, Ukraine, 04050

Tel: +38 044 483 95 01

www.veselka.in.ua

Rights coordinator: Oleksiy Bondarenko, oleksabond@veselka.in.ua

Mob.: +380 (67) 209 92 23

 

Vivat Publishing Ltd.

A member of Factor Group of Companies, Vivat Publishing is among three top publishers of Ukraine today. It has over 5000 books in print and sells over 2.5 million books per year. In 2015, Vivat Publishing produced 460 new books. Its products include virtually every type of book, from books for children and teenagers to fiction and non-fiction for adult readers.
Vivat Publishing has accomplished success both domestically and internationally, selling copyrights to 21 countries and planning to continue this. In addition to that, the publisher is open to cooperation on the co-production basis and can print books for its partners at the biggest printing house in Ukraine, Factor Druk, which is also a member of Factor Group of Companies.
The authors published at Vivat Publishing include the bestselling foreign and Ukrainian writers, such as Michael Cunningham, Svetlana Alexievich, R. J. Palacio, Rainbow Rowell, Atul Gawande, Boris Reitschuster, Eugene Magda, Natalia Guzeeva , Natalia Chub, Oleksiy Chupa.

Address: 10 Homonenka St., Kharkiv, Ukraine, 61037
vivat-publishing.com

Rights coordinators: Anna Vyunnik, Nataliya Zagrebelna
a.vyunnik@vivat.factor.ua
n.zagrebelnaya@vivat.factor.ua

 

Wise bee

(founded in 2015)

The goal of the young publishing house is to help readers believe in their unique nature and learn the universe. Wіse bee creates both books, and series of products that inspire, develop, teach and pamper all senses. The editorial portfolio has three products so far: My COOL Girl by Maryna Pavlenko; LIFEBOOK by Alla Zadneprovska, and coaching cards by Alla Zadneprovska.

www.wisebee.com.ua
Rights coordinators: Liliya Pochkun, +38 067 50 90 911. Liliya.pochkun@wisebee.com.ua

 

Book stores and distribution chains in Ukraine

After a decline in the number of bookstores in 2013-2014 as a result of war in Eastern Ukraine and the attempted annexation of Crimea, the industry is now reviving and demonstrating positive dynamics in terms of quantity (the number of bookstores grow and chains expand) and quality (publishers get representation through alternative channels in addition to bookstores).
According to the State TV and Radio Committee, 2015 saw an increase in the number of retail book sale points and businesses. Listed below are three top performers by various benchmarks: 9 oblasts saw an expansion of bookselling chains. The leaders are Kyiv with 61 new selling points, Kharkiv Oblast with 66 and Volyn Oblast with 48.

The presence of book sections in supermarkets is the highest in Vinnytsia Oblast (365), Kharkiv Oblast (263) and Khmelnytskyi Oblast (204), as well as Kyiv (106).

The biggest number of book kiosks/stalls is in Kherson Oblast (410), Mykolayiv Oblast (369) and Kyiv (312).

The biggest number of independent bookstores, which are not part of any chain and are up to 50 sq m large, is in Lviv Oblast (144), Kherson Oblast (67) and Kyiv (90).

In the first half of 2016, Klub Simeynoho Dozvillia maintained leadership as the biggest bookstore chain with 74 stores in the cities with the population of over 1 million, as well as smaller towns. Other developed chains are Bukva (25 stores in promising oblast capitals) and Chytay-gorod (12 stores). The Ternopil publisher Navchalna Knyha – Bohdan, which owns the Dim knyhy book stores, has a big chain as well (20 stores mainly in oblast capitals). The Ye book store has been confidently increasing its chain with 22 stores in Ukraine now. A somewhat smaller chain owned by the Kharkiv publisher Ranok has 8 stores total.

Almost all market leaders (both publishers and book store chains) have their own online stores. The leaders in this section of the book market are Yakaboo (with 150,000 books and 25,000 visitors per day. The company has announced the establishment of its own publishing house) and Klub Simeynoho Dozvillia (200,000 books, 20,000 visitors daily). Such a wide choice offered by these book stores is enabled by including books produced in Russia into the offer: only 300 publishers out of 1,230 represented at their stores are Ukrainian. Apart from them, there are smaller book stores. These include the specialized store BookZone with 40,000 nonfiction books from 540 publishers and Vsiknygy, which offer over 6,000 items from 235 publishers.

In the recent years, publishers have also increased their presence in nationwide and regional supermarket chains, including Auchan, Novus, Metro etc. Some publishers started selling their books at gas stations, in children’s stores, art centers and restaurants.

 

Libraries

As of 2015, the network of libraries under the management of the Ministry of Culture included 16,159 libraries. Out of these, 4 are national libraries, 2 of the state level, and 15,981 are public libraries, 13,700 or 83% of them in villages.
According to the data provided by the National Parliament Library of Ukraine, every third citizen in Ukraine uses the services of public libraries. Almost half a million of their readership are children under 7 years.

In 2016, library stocks in the Ukrainian language prevailed over items in other languages for the first time. Previously, books in the Russian language prevailed. New books acquired by libraries are mostly fiction and popular science literature.
A drawback for Ukraine’s book market is insufficient Internet penetration in the country. The number of libraries with Internet access is 20.7%; only 11% village libraries have Internet.

Libraries by oblasts

What Ukrainians prefer to read

Adults’ reading. According to the Research of Book Reading in Ukraine in 2013 and 2014 by GfK Ukraine, 51% of Ukrainians aged 15-59 read at least one book in the past three months. A survey by pro.mova (from August 2013 till January 2014) found that 88.3% of Ukrainians read at least something. 57.9% claim to have read at least one book over the past year.

A study by TNS Ukraine reveals the dynamics of change over the past five years. It has found a 5% decrease in the number of Ukrainians who can’t think of a life without reading books. The decline is more present in older age groups, while the group aged 12-24 shows an increase in readers.

Formation of the home library. Almost a half of pro.mova’s respondents said they collected their home library, 46% said they did not.

Reading to children. According to pro.mova, only 27.7% of the respondents who have children and/or grandchildren claim to read to them every day. Adults turned out to be more active while reading to preschoolers.

An average Ukrainian reads 4.3 full books with over 100 pages per year
10% of those who said they read long texts in the past 12 months could not recall the title of the last book they read

Choice of books for home library. Almost half of those polled by pro.move said they collect a home library, 46% said they don’t

Children’s reading. According to pro.mova, only 27.7% of those polled who have children and/or grandchildren say that they read to the kids on a daily basis. Parents or grandparents read more to children of pre-school age.

Reading & leisure. Based on pro.mova accounts, reading is in the three most popular leisure activities amongst Ukrainians, following TV watching (nearly 80%) and spending time with friends and family (70%). Almost 65% of those polled prefer to read in their free time; 40% browse through online reading, and 30% watch films.

Book shopping. According to GfK Ukraine, 30% of adults bought at least one book over the three months preceding the survey in 2013. In the past 7 years, the number of book buyers has decreased from 42% in September 2006 to 30% in August 2013. Over 2014, the numbers did not change significantly compared to 2013. As stated in the report, the lack of money is the main reason why those polled do not buy printed books. The second most common reason is access to a library at home or friends. According to GfK Ukraine’s study in 2014, the respondents bought printed books most often, by far, in book stores. Their second and third most popular choices of book shopping were markets and supermarkets.

Types of books. GFK Ukraine reports that Ukrainians mostly read detective and love stories, classic literature and applied literature (books on hobbies, self-educational reference books, recommendations, esoteric literature etc). At the same time, the books bought by the respondents most often are fiction for preschoolers, detectives, romance novels and classics. Compared to 2013, 2014 saw the revival of interest in science and educational literature (beyond school curriculum).

1. Book Reading Research in Ukraine – 2013 (GfK Ukraine)
2. Book Reading Research in Ukraine – 2014 (GfK Ukraine)
3. Reading in Ukraine (pro.mova)
4. TNS Research in Ukraine (2010–2014)

Top literary competitions

Ukraine has a number of literature and book awards and competitions. One is the State Taras Shevchenko Prize, an award introduced in 1961 for a significant contribution into the development of culture and art. Specialized competitions are being established for horror, detective, fantasy writers, authors of children’s literature, texts focused on specific regions, important dates or figures. Krayina magazine holds a competition of novellas to promote this genre in Ukraine. The founders of a private award, METAPHORA, select the best translations of poetry and essays into Ukrainian. Various competitions are part of festivals, such as the Young Republic of Poets held under the umbrella of the Lviv International Literary Festival, or the annual book of the year competition held every year at the Publishers’ Forum. Kyivski Lavry festival held by the SHO magazine of alternative culture offers its own awards.
Below are the most important literary awards:

 

Word Coronation
(since 1999)

Koronatsiya Slova, or Word Coronation, is an international literary competition of novels, plays, film scripts, song lyrics and children’s literature. The goal is to support new Ukrainian literature, discover new talents, publish the best novels, as well as give incentives and support to contemporary writing for cinematography and theater.
Winners: Iren Rozdobudko, Maryna Hrymych, Andriy Kokotiukha and more.

website: koronatsiya.com
Contact: koronatsiya@gmail.com; +38 (067) 252 50 20, + 38 (095) 000 7 000

BBC Book of the Year
(since 2005)

This is an annual literary prize given by the BBC to the best prose fiction piece in the Ukrainian language. It didn’t take long to become one of the most prestigious literary awards in the country. Since 2012, the award has been given in two categories: BBC Book of the Year and BBC Children’s Book of the Year.
Winners: Sofia Andrukhovych, Yuriy Vynnychuk, Vasyl Makhno, Liuko Dashvar, Yuri Izdryk, Mariana and Taras Prokhasko. On the award’s 10th anniversary, the organizers also chose The Book of the Decade: Serhiy Zhadan’s Voroshilovgrad won the award.

Contact: ukrainian.section@bbc.co.uk

 

Literary competition from Smoloskyp publishing house
(since 1993)

This literary competition sees its main goal in supporting young artists who have already shown talent but do not yet have many publications. It accepts poetry, prose, drama and children’s fiction manuscripts in Ukrainian that have not been published before. Age eligibility is between 18 and 30 for poetry and up to 35 for prose.
Winners: Serhiy Zhadan, Taras Prokhasko, Ivan Andrusiak, Rostyslav Melnyk, Andriy Kokotiukha, Dmytro Lazutkin, Pavlo Korobchuk, Yulia Stakhivska.

Contact: mbf.smoloskyp@gmail.com; +38 (044) 425 23 93

 

LitAccent of the Year
(since 2008)

The book award by the authoritative literature portal LitAccent awards books written in Ukrainian and published both in Ukraine and abroad in six nominations: prose, poetry, prose and poetry for children, essays, literary criticism and the Golden Bubble anti-award. Winners: Sophia Andrukhovych, Mykhailo Brynykh, Bohdana Matiash, Oleh Lysheha, Vira Ageyeva.

Contact: redaktor@litakcent.com

 

Book of the Year nationwide rating
(since 2000)

Launched by the Elite-profi Center for Rating Research, the initiative aimed at promoting Ukrainian book publishing and finding the best books on an annual basis. The organizers include Taras Shevchenko Institute of Literature at the National Academy of Sciences, Drahomanov Pedagogic University, the Fund for Supporting Development of Art and Ukrayina Moloda newspaper. The jury experts are Ukraine’s top publishers, critics, writers, political analysts, journalists and editors of popular magazines, culture experts, Members of Parliament and directors of public institutions.

 

Samovydets Reportage Competition
(since 2012)

The Samovydets competition bears the name of Mike Johansen, a Ukrainian poet and prose writer of the 1920s who started the tradition of reportage in Ukraine. Tempora, a Kyiv-based publishing house, has continued and promoted this tradition for many years. Samovydets is the competition it launched for reportage.
Winners: Nataliya Gumenyuk, Maria Semenchenko, Olesia Yaremchuk, Oleh Kryshtopa, Denys Kazanskyi.

Contact: samovydets@gmail.com; +38 063 775 17 57

 

Yuriy Shevelyov Award for Modern Essays
(since 2013)

This award covers fiction and academic essays published within a year. It looks for independence of thinking and elegance of style. The competition was named after Yuriy Shevelyov who started modern Ukrainian essay writing. The award was founded by the Ukrainian Center PEN International, Kyiv-Mohyla Business School, Dukh i Litera publishing house and Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute.
Winners: Andriy Portnov, Taras Prokhasko, Kost Moskalets, Oleksandr Boychenko.

http://www.shevelyov-award.com
Contact: sheveliov.award@gmail.com

Hranoslov
(since 1991)

Hranoslov is the oldest literary competition for young writers in Ukraine. Over the years of its existence, nearly 2,000 young authors have competed in it, including virtually all well-known writers of the 1990s’ generation.
Winners: Serhiy Zhadan, Roman Skyba, Irena Karpa, Halyna Kruk, Anatoliy Dnistrovyi, Yulia Musakovska, Natalia Biletska.

Contact: mudrakl@ukr.net; +38 (044) 253 00 22

 

The Best Book of the Publishers’ Forum
(since 1995)

This is the annual nationwide book competition that takes place under the umbrella of the Publishers’ Forum in Lviv. Publishing houses apply by submitting their new books to a jury of experts. The ceremony of choosing the winners and the award reception gala takes place on the first day of the Forum.

Contact: bookforum@bookforum.com.ua

 

Residencies

Drabyna Art Studio

Drama.UA residency for directors and playwrights emerged as an attempt to establish communication and cooperation amongst theater professionals from different cities across Ukraine. Some residencies focus on creating a specific theater product (i.e. a stage reading or play), whereas others were looking to educate and develop, as well as build the theater community. The list of Drabyna residents includes directors Pavel Yurov and Anton Romanov; playwrights Oksana Savchenko, Mykola Homanyuk, Yevhen Markovsky and Marie Vakula.
website: drabyna.org
e-mail: viktoria.shvydko@drabyna.org, oksana.danchuk@drabyna.org

 

Stanislav Phenomenon Residency
(since 2013, Ivano-Frankivsk)

Eligibility criteria for the residency are talent and 18 to 30 years of age. In different years the list of the residency jury members included writers Taras Prokhasko, Yuri Andrukhovych, Galyna Petrosanyak, Vasyl Karpyuk and Vitaly Chupak. The preference is given to the candidates with high-quality works who are not yet widely known. The aim of the residency is to discover new talents.
website: fenomen.in.ua
e-mail: konkurs@fenomen.in.ua

 

Agnon Literary Center Residency
(since 2016)

This short-term literary residency takes place under the Agnon: 50 Years to Understand program from the Agnon Literary Center. The residency is part of a broader program dedicated to the 50-year anniversary since Shmuel Yosef Agnon received his Nobel Prize for literature in December 1966. He was born in Buchach, the town in Ternopil Oblast that now hosts the residency. Apart from the residency, the project includes an open-air street exhibition and a series of meetings with modern writers.
website: facebook.com/AgnonCenter/
e-mail: agnoncenter@gmail.com, +38 (066) 468 79 58

 

Carpathian Literary Residency
(since 2016)

The residency in the village of Lastivka in Lviv Oblast, Western Ukraine, is for writers, translators, cultural managers and reportage authors. The participants will be spending two weeks in a cozy wooden cottage at the Karpaty hotel&leisure complex writing their pieces and working on other projects.
e-mail: carpathian.residency@gmail.com

Organizations

Nationwide:

Ukrainian Book Institute
(since 2016)

The goal of the newly-established Ukrainian Book Institute is to popularize reading on the nationwide scale, and to promote Ukrainian literature at home and abroad. Four key areas of its activity will include support to libraries through public grants and local fund-raising; financial assistance to Ukrainian publishing houses in the production of Ukrainian classic pieces and the best translations of foreign literature; organization of a widescale campaign to promote reading through the media and various cultural events; and promotion of books by Ukraine’s top writers at international exhibitions and fora.
The creation of such an institution will give Ukraine a powerful instrument to promote book culture and thus strengthen pluralism, dialogue and important structures of open society.
e-mail: semkiv.uik@gmail.com

 

Ukrainian Library Association
(since 1995)

A national professional NGO, the Ukrainian Library Association represents nearly 67,000 librarians and around 40,000 libraries across the country. ULA members work in public, college, university, school and special libraries. It has 20 regional and special branches in all oblasts of Ukraine. The ULA strives to be the chief advocate for the people of Ukraine to achieve and maintain high-quality library and information services.
The ULA has been collaborating on different projects with international organizations, including the British Council in Kyiv, Goethe-Institut in Kyiv, the U. S. Embassy in Kyiv, and IREX (International Research & Exchanges Board), Parliamentary Development Project, the European Commission (under its IST Programme) and others.
website: ula.org.ua
e-mail: info@ula.org.ua

 

Ukrainian Publishers and Booksellers Association (UPBA)
(since 1999)

A national charitable non-profit organization, UPBA initiates and co-organizes major book exhibitions and fairs in the country. These include the Publishers’ Forum (1994), Medvin: Book World (1999), The World of Books (2000), Ukrainian Book Days in Odesa Oblast (2001) and others. The UPBA has been involved in resolving the majority of legal disputes that arise between entities in the publishing business, publishers and booksellers, as well as state fiscal services.
Since 2011, the UPBA has been a member of the International Publishers Association.
The UPBA President is Oleksandr Afonin.
Adress: 4 Triokhsvyatytelska St., office 526, Kyiv , Ukraine, 01601
website: www.uabooks.info
e-mail: upba@ukr.net

 

State Committee for Television and Radio Broadcasting of Ukraine

The central executive body with special status under the control of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, it formulates and implements state policy in the publishing field.
Address: 2 Prorizna St., Kyiv 01001
e-mail: a.kononenko@ukr.net, sector@comin.gov.ua

Non-government:

Agnon Literary Center
(since 2015)

Agnon Literary Center is a non-profit literary organization located in Buchach (Ukraine) since July 2015. The main goal of Agnon Literary Center is to promote literary projects for the community of Buchach, a small town in Ternopil Oblast, Western Ukraine, where Nobel Prize laureate writer Shmuel Yosef Agnon was born.
Agnon Literary Center will develop projects in different areas, such as meetings discussing literature and book presentations, book club, translation and publishing projects, local history projects; as well as a literature residency project.
e-mail: agnoncenter@gmail.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/AgnonCenter

 

Center for Literary Education
(since 2013)

The Center for Literary Education is an educational organization providing a platform for sharing experiences, professional development and communication of those involved in the cultural process. Its major projects and spheres of interest are a course to improve writing skills, Summer Literature School, tours to Poland (and other countries in the future), lectures on writing skills, schools for publishers and managers in the field, special courses by well-known Ukrainian and foreign writers, children’s program (literature schools for children and teenagers), and publishing projects.
Lecturers: Yuri Andrukhovych, Oksana Zabuzhko, Serhiy Zhadan, Irena Karpa, Taras Prokhasko, Yuriy Vynnychuk and others.
E-mail: litosvita.org@gmail.com
website: litosvita.com
Facebook: https://facebook.com/litosvita

 

Dobra Lystivka Charity Fund
(since 2014)

Dobra Lystivka, a Kind Postcard in Ukrainian, is a charity raising money via design and sale of unique postcards by famous Ukrainian and international designers and artists. All profit from sale goes to rehabilitation programs for disabled children in Ukraine. Currently, the fund cooperates with the organization “Mission to Ukraine” (misiavukrainu.org).
The project is quite unique in Ukraine and the world as one of the few where a nationwide product is made and all profit goes to charity. At the moment organisation works with such famous artists as Mariana Luiz Johnson (Argentina), Conrad Rosed (Spain), Takashi Yamamoto (Japan), Maguma (Spain), Thiago Neumann (Brasil), Valentina Brostean (Italy), Rado Javor (Slovakia), Gediminas Pranckevicius (Lithuania), Mindkillerink (USA) and many others. Overall, more than 100 artists from 12 countries take part in the project with over 300 varieties of postcards.
website: http://dobralystivka.com
e-mail: order@dobralystivka.com
tel: +380-67- 2092740

 

Magnum Opus
(since 2011)

Magnum Opus is a non-profit independent art association based in Poltava, Central Ukraine. It was established on September 7, 2011. The association works on various initiatives, projects and organizes art events within Poltava Oblast. Its fields of activity include literature, photography and cinema, as well as cultural management. Magnum Opus is not officially registered. Its events include book presentations, house concerts, poetry evenings and photo exhibitions. Projects: People read.
website: https://www.facebook.com/magnum.opus.poltava
E-mail: magnumopuschannel@gmail.com

 

IZOLYATSIA. Platform for Cultural Initiatives
(since 2010)

IZOLYATSIA is a cultural platform founded in Donetsk in 2010 and relocated to Kyiv in June 2014 after the military occupation of its premises. The institution’s mission is to inspire positive change in Ukraine by using culture as an instrument. IZOLYATSIA has three intertwined areas of activity: art, education and projects to activate Ukraine’s creative sector.
Since 2010, IZOLYATSIA has carried out over forty international projects as well as initiatives inside Ukraine. These include art exhibitions, residencies, concerts, festivals, conferences and other cultural events. Moreover, the foundation has initiated several research projects, including Donbas Studies and Soviet Mosaics in Ukraine. IZONE, a project by IZOLYATSIA, is a hub in Kyiv devoted to championing emerging talent in contemporary practice placed within the context of the arts, creative industries and technology. In 2016, IZONE became Ukraine’s first platform to host the international Creative Business Cup.
izone.ua, izolyatsia.org
e-mail: info@izolyatsia.org

 

Literature.RV
(since 2011)

The NGO has organized over 70 literary events in Rivne, Western Ukraine, since 2011. These are mostly the presentations of prose and poetry books, meetings with publishers and illustrators, and poetry evenings. Literature.RV aspires to organize its events at the highest level: the authors are provided with the necessary conditions for living in the city and communicating with the audience, while the audience is provided with affordable tickets and comfortable meeting rooms. Thanks to this, the average number of visitors who attended our meetings last year reached 107. Literature.RV is interested in collaboration with participants from Poland, Germany, France, UK and other EU countries.
e-mail: literatura.rv.org@gmail.com
Facebook:fb.com/literature.rv

 

Litera: Open Readings
(since 2015)

Litera: Open Readings is a non-profit literary project located in Chernihiv, Northern Ukraine.
The main purpose of Litera: Open Readings is to develop culture and literature fields Chernihiv as well as to give an opportunity to its dwellers and guests to express themselves. Litera: Open Readings is suitable for various activities, including literature meetings, book presentations, discussions, theatre performances, public lectures, workshop sessions etc.
e-mail: masha_chevan@mail.ru
www.facebook.com/Л-І- Т-Е- Р-А- 1502130530007710

 

Pictoric Illustrators Club

Pictoric is a proactive community of Ukrainian graphic designers, illustrators and artists that stand out with their uniform vision and unique artistic style. In various manners, their works reflect current trends in graphic arts. Pictoric views its mission as the promotion and development of quality artworks, and precisely of illustrations who can represent Ukraine internationally. Pictoric organizes annual international illustration exhibitions on the platform of Book Arsenal Festival. Its other activities over the year include public lectures, exhibition events, workshops delivered by Ukrainian and foreign illustrators.
Curators: Oleg Gryshchenko, Anastasia Denysenko, Anna Sarvira, Olena Staranchuk
e-mail: pictoric.ua@gmail.com
www.facebook.com/pictoric.ua

 

Ukrainian Literary Center
(since 2008)

Ukrainian Literary Center (Litcentr) is a cultural organization and online platform that promotes literature in Ukraine and around the world. The goals of Litcentr platform are the promotion of Ukrainian literature and book events; organization of readings, festivals, competitions, presentations, concerts, cultural events and projects; support and promotion of projects combining literature with other arts; own educational events; translation projects in order to promote and popularize Ukrainian literature worldwide; cooperation and mutual projects with Ukrainian and international cultural groups, organizations and embassies of different countries in Ukraine; publishing.
website: www.litcentr.in.ua
e-mail: info@litcentr.in.ua
Facebook: http://facebook.com/litcentr.in.ua

 

Mali.UA
(since 2015)

Mali.UA, the Small Publishers’ Union, aims to promote books and projects of independent publishers and help them communicate with partners, as well as take part in exhibitions, fairs, appear in mass media. The union’s members are both well-known publishers (Bratske or Meduza) that have great chances on the mass market, and unique projects for readers with a refined taste, as well as limited editions and self-publishing projects.
The Small Publishers’ Union was founded by the editorial team of Chytomo, an authoritative online media in the sphere of publishing.
website: chytomo.com
e-mail: chytomo@gmail.com

 

The Depths of Art Charity Foundation
(since 2014)

The Depths of Art (“Мистецькі надра” in Ukrainian) is a non-profit organization located in Kyiv. It organizes a cycle of socio-cultural fora aimed at building a tolerant civil society through cultural relations, communication and art relations between Ukraine’s regions.
The project carries out two-week cultural fora in the capitals of geographically opposite oblasts in Ukraine. For now, the project has developed three projects: two-week Doncult Forums in Kyiv in October-November 2014 and in Lviv in June 2015 – these focused on the culture and art of the Donbas; and GaliciaCult in Kharkiv in October 2016 – this forum is devoted to the culture and art of Halychyna, a region of Western Ukraine also known as Galicia. Each forum included a program of lectures and discussions, as well as visual (exhibitions), music, theatre, literature and cinema elements; as well as an educational element for children and adults.
website: www.dofa.fund
e-mail: dofa.fund@gmail.com

 

Ukrainian Research Center of Children’s and Youth Literature (URCCYL)
(since 2009)

An integral part of the URCCYL activities is the establishment of professional academic dialogue in the field of literature for children and young people. URCCYL members are researchers, academics, writers, publishers, librarians, representatives of universities and institutes, NGOs and editorial boards from across Ukraine. The URCCYL publishes a professional bulletin Literature. Children Time (Література. Діти. Час) based on the findings of the International Symposium by the same name held by the URCCYL annually.
Adress: 26/6 Stryiska St., Lviv, 79011
Tel: +38 067 8769797
E-mail: urccyl.new@gmail.com
website: http://urccyl.com.ua/en/

 

Yizdetz Literary Travel Project
(since 2014)

This is a cultural initiative working to develop and popularize literature tourism in Ukraine. Founded in 2014, the project sees its mission in promoting cultural tourism and leisure, motivating travels and research, and thus helping establish communication between Ukraine’s different regions. There are two major components to Yizdets. The first one is to create a literary guide that is a combination of short stories and a proper tourist guide to interesting and little-known locations around Ukraine as seen by writers. The guide will come out at the beginning of 2016. The second component is the organization of short and longer weekend tours to interesting literature-inspired locations with top Ukrainian writers, historians of literature and art, and cultural managers, as guides.
e-mail: yizdetz@gmail.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/yizdetz

 

Zoryana Fortetsya Literary Union

(since 2008)

Its name translated from Ukrainian as “Star Fortress”, Zoryana Fortetsya is a non-profit literature organization. Its main goal is to develop Ukrainian sci-fi and fantasy literature, and consolidate writers, artists, translators, publishers and fans in this field. Zoryana Fortetsya holds a competition of sci-fi and fantasy stories in the Ukrainian language twice a year. It offers, among other things, classes and workshops for young writers. The Union also promotes sci-fi & fantasy events and writers at literature festivals in Ukraine.
website: http://starfort.in.ua
e-mail: starfortess@gmail.com
Facebook: facebook.com/groups/starfort/

Top festivals and book fairs

Festivals & book shows:

Green Wave International Book Exhibition Fair
(since 1995)

The open-air exhibition&fair located in Odesa is one of the milestone book forums in Ukraine, an event of the year for the entire book community. Green Wave features presentations of new books and meetings with authors, meet-the-artist and autograph sessions, workshops with famous writers, book competitions, a Green Wave movie hall, readers’ contests, specials and more. Alongside the Green Wave, the IV Odesa International Korney Chukovsky Festival for Children’s Literature takes place. It is the only festival in Ukraine entirely devoted to children’s books and creativity. The next Green Wave will take place in August 2017.
website: http://expodessa.com/books/
e-mail: info@expodessa.od.ua
Facebook: www.facebook.com/greenwaveod

 

International Arsenal Book Festival
(since 2011)

The Arsenal Book Festival is an annual international event organized by the National Art, Culture and Museum Complex Mystetskyi Arsenal (Art Arsenal) in Kyiv. The authentic element of the festival is the build-up of an innovative multidisciplinary milieu focused on the book market and literature, as well as on contemporary art, illustration, music, performance, cinematography and creative labs for children. The festival seeks to inspire reading, promote international exchange in literature, and strengthen Ukrainian book market by bringing together new audiences and ideas.
In 2016, the Arsenal Book Festival had over 93,000 visitors and more than 40 international authors in the program. The book fair that is part of the festival hosted on its platform over 150 publishers and other cultural players. The VII Arsenal Book Festival and fair will take place on May 17-21, 2017.
website: artarsenal.in.ua/eng
e-mail: biblio.arsenal@gmail.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/BookArsenal

 

Lviv Publishers’ Forum
(since 1994)

The Publishers’ Forum NGO was founded in Lviv to promote reading among Ukrainians and to help Ukrainian book market and literature develop. The Lviv Publishers’ Forum, held since 1994, is one of its most notable annual events. It is a platform that brings together an international book fair with over 400 exhibitors and a literature festival with more than 300 international and Ukrainian writers. Traditionally, it takes place every September in Lviv, Western Ukraine.

 

BOOKMANIA

Knyhomania, the Ukrainian name for Bookmania, stands for the Nationwide Children’s Reading Competition held since 2002 in Lviv and going to the all-Ukraine scale in 2005. The purpose of the competition is to encourage children aged 12-14 years to read their favorite books. The main prize is a trip to the Lviv Children Festival. During 2002-2014, over 700,000 teenagers from all over Ukraine took part in the competition.

 

SLONIA Children’s Festival
(held since 2007)

The program includes more than 400 various workshops in art, music, theater, ecology, science and more. Yet, literature remains the main focus of the festival. Among other things, it features a fair of children’s books. The festival takes place in May.
website: bookforum.ua / e-mail: bookforum@gmail.com, litfest@bookforum.com.ua, presa@bookforum.com.ua

 

MEDVIN Kyiv Book Fair

(since 1999)

MEDVIN: Book World is a traditional annual Kyiv book fair organized by the MEDVIN exhibition company and supported by the Association of Ukrainian Book Publishers and Sellers. The cultural program of the fair is curated by the Kapranov brothers, a duo of well-known writers, activists and publishers in Ukraine. Apart from that, MEDVIN has held two successful EUROCONs – European Science Fiction Convent. The fair is a meeting place for everybody who likes books.
website: http://www.medvin.kiev.ua/index.php/exhibitions/books
е-mail: valery@medvin.kiev.ua

 

Zaporizhzhia Book Toloka
(since 2015)

The ZBT is a book fair and a literature festival combined, as well as an open-space hub for creative interaction and public dialogue which lasts three days in October in Zaporizhzhia, South-Eastern Ukraine. It hosts over 150 socio-cultural, art and communication events, with lots of discussion groups, round tables, book presentations and debates about timely publishing projects, open lectures, photo displays and other activities involving Ukrainian and foreign writers, journalists, academics and artists. Currently, the festival seeks to boost cultural progress in the frontline parts of South-Eastern Ukraine, establish social dialogue within the local community, create a cultural space that would be open and friendly to different groups of people, including IDPs as the new residents of Zaporizhzhia, war veterans, and people with special needs. It is organized by the Art-Space NGO and partner organizations.
website: http://toloka.net/
e-mail: info@toloka.net

Festivals:

Alphabetic Kingdom of Wizards and Angels
(since 2010)

This pan-Ukrainian Festival of Ukrainian Book for Children is an annual international event organized by the Kyiv-based Museum of Books and Printing of Ukraine. Every year, the festival offers more than 100 events, including the presentations from famous writers, artists, publishers, literary and theatrical performances, and workshops. Old techniques of making books, paper and manuscripts in cloase contact with the Museum artefacts are presented in modern workshops. The festival takes place in October.
e-mail: valentbook@gmail.com

 

Artgnosis
(since 2014)

Artgnosis is the first art festival project in Vinnytsia, Central Ukraine. It is intended to attract a much bigger audience of artists and spectators to the city’s culture life. Artgnosis is an explosive combination of the best representatives of modern Ukrainian literature, music and theatre. The festival aims at widening Ukrainian cultural space in Vinnytsia by involving its residents in new music, book and theatre tendencies of Ukraine.
e-mail: artgnosis2015@gmail.com
tel: +38 (093) 535 94 24, Maryna Odnoroh

 

March Cats
(since 2006)

The art festival is an annual international event organized by the Rotunda Assembly of Artists and partners from Uzhhorod, Zakarpattya Oblast in Western Ukraine. The purpose of the festival is to create an innovative environment focused on literature, while also catering to those interested in contemporary art, theater, music, etc. March Cats promotes Ukrainian literature and contemporary art in the Carpathian region. It focuses on current social issues and invites foreign guests. The next festival will take place in March, 2017.
e-mail: vikkovrej@gmail.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/artfestbereznevikoty/

 

Coda Fest
A new project from the Artgnosis team, it offers an inspiring combination of four areas in art, including alternative music, literature, theatre and cinema. This is the third festival from the Artgnosis team. Coda Fest caters to art gourmands in search of a new, fresh and high-rated product. The upcoming chance to get on this year’s fall art boat will be on November 18-20 in Vinnytsia.
facebook.com/codafst/?fref=ts
e-mail: codafst@gmail.com

 

CYCLOP
(since 2011)

CYCLOP is a video poetry festival established in 2011 by the Ukrainian Literary Center NGO. The goal is to support and promote video poetry as a new genre and school of cinematography. The festival takes place in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv annually. The programme features video poetry-related lectures, workshops, round tables, discussions, presentations of international competitions and festivals, as well as the sceening of the best Ukrainian and world video poetry, a competition program, an award ceremony and other related projects. CYCLOP is one of 10 biggest video poetry festivals throughout the world. It collaborates in joint projects and film screenings in Argentina, Austria, Canada, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Lithuania, Poland, Spain, Scotland, the UK, USA, and more.
website: www.cyclop.in.ua
e-mail: info@cyclop.in.ua
facebook.com/CYCLOP.in.ua

 

Intermezzo Short Story Festival
(since 2015)

It is a novelty in Ukraine’s cultural landscape first held in May 2015 in Vinnytsia. The festival focuses on the genre of short prose and offers the intertwining of storytelling in literature and cinematography. Intermezzo is planned as an annual event, a tribute to Ukrainian writer and public figure Mykhailo Kotsiubynskyi born in Vinnytsia in 1864. Organizers see his legacy of short stories as something that belongs in the heritage of world literature and integrated Ukrainian culture into the context of European modernism. Readings, discussions, performances, lectures, screenings and after-parties elegantly intervene with the urban space of this capital of Podillia, a historic name for the region where Vinnytsia is located. The festival is organized by the Institute of Culture Management NGO, Vinnytsia City Council, and Mykhailo Kotsiubynskyi Memorial Museum. The II Intermezzo Short Story Festival is to be held on May 2017 in Vinnytsia.
website: intermezzofest.com
e-mail: info@intermezzofest.com
facebook.com/intermezzofest

 

Ї International Art Festival
(since 2014)

Art festival “Ї” (a unique letter in Ukraine’s alphabet, pronounced as Yi) is an annual international event organized by the team of young culture actors in Ternopil, Western Ukraine. The festival focuses on the creation of a multi-disciplinary art platform that brings together artists from all over Ukraine and abroad. Ї is the perfect combination of literature, music, painting, photography, film and other arts in a single festival. Its aim is to encourage communication between readers, viewers and music lovers, and Ukrainian and foreign authors.
e-mail: mystetskyi@gmail.com

 

International Literature Festival Odessa
(since 2014)

International Literature Festival Odessa organized by cultural managers Ulrich Schreiber (Germany) and Hans Ruprecht (Switzerland) is an annual festival that is set to change Ukraine. The four days of readings and discussions at the Black Sea port once eulogized by Alexander Pushkin for its international flair, includes dozens of authors from all over the world. The festival aims to underscore the cultural charisma and international character of the city and to contribute to strengthening its connections with other cultural metropolises in Europe and on other continents. There is a wide range of genres presented during the ilo: from children`s and young adult publications to entertaining and more intricate works, as well as contemporary poetry. The organizers are eager to connect the ilo with existing, regional literary networks and are keen on forging international synergies between other international literature festivals and the Word Alliance.
website: litfestodessa.com

 

Kyivski Lavry
(since 2006)

Kyivski Lavry International Poetry Festival is one of the largest and most reputable literary events in Ukraine. The founder and permanent organizer of the festival is ШО (SHO), a magazine about modern culture. The festival has been held in the mid-May Kyiv since 2006. Over the years the festival was attended by more than 500 poets, literary critics, musicians and artists from Belarus, France, Georgia, Israel, Kazakhstan, Macedonia, Poland, Russia, Ukraine, USA and other countries. Each year the festival chooses the winners of Kyivski Lavry Poetry Award. In 2011, it funded a Youth Poetry Prize.
website: www.sho.kiev.ua
e-mail: sho@sho.kiev.ua

 

Kharkiv Book Fest
(since 2015)
Kharkiv Book Fest is a series of public events united under the book umbrella. These include exhibitions, tours, film screenings, literature evenings, publishers’ meetings, and a big book fair in the city garden. The festival emphasizes the role of Kharkiv in Ukrainian book world. The city is de-facto the biggest center of the country’s book publishing industry. It hosts four out of five biggest publishing houses, and its printing capacities can publish all the books released in Ukraine. The Book Council meeting is one of the most important events of the festival. The Council brings together at one table the biggest book publishers and government officials to discuss common challenges in the book industry, such as the identification of Ukraine in the book world as a bilingual country, ways to counteract counterfeit products and e-piracy, and revival of the culture of reading.
The event is organized by the Factor company group, Vivat publishing house, Kharkiv City Council, and the Charity Foundation of Yuriy Sapronov.
website: http://www.bookfest.com.ua
e-mail: pr@vivat.factor.ua

 

Kyiv Comic Con
(since 2015)

Kyiv Comic Con is Ukraine’s first major festival of popular culture dedicated to cinematography, comic books, video games, animation, cosplay, literature and board games. The program of the festival features presentation of new comic, manga and fiction books (both Ukrainian ones, and newly-translated books), lectures and workshops with well-known artists, an extensive film program with presentation of new Ukrainian fiction movies, indy films, anime and cartoons, meetings with cast and film makers, cosplay shows, and presentations of new Ukrainian video and board games. A separate program for children is intended to both entertain them and introduce them to the fine samples of popular culture. It includes author readings, art classes and other creative activities.
website: comiccon.kiev.ua
e-mail: comicconkyiv@gmail.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/comicconkyiv

 

Meridian Czernowitz
(since 2010)

The International Literature Corporation has four main areas of focus. These include the Meridian Chernowitz International Festival of Poetry, Paul Celan Center for Literature, Meridian Czernowitz International Residence for writers and translators and the publishing house.
MERIDIAN CZERNOWITZ International Festival of Poetry is the event built on the foundation of the cultural heritage of Chernivtsi, a city in Western Ukraine known as Czernowitz under the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The overall objective of the festival is to return Chernivtsi to its place on the cultural map of Europe which it has lost, as well as to develop the dialogue between contemporary Ukrainian poets and their foreign colleagues.
The festival takes place on the first and second week of September every year in Chernivtsi. Festival participants are prominent writers from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Israel, Great Britain, USA, Denmark, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Lichtenstein, France, Poland, Russia and Ukraine. More than a hundred writers from all around the world have attended the festival throughout its six years of activity.
website: meridiancz.com
e-mail: pomer@meridiancz.com, lopataevg@meridiancz.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/meridiancz

 

LiTerra Con
(since 2014)

LiTerra Con started in 2014 as small fiction literature conference. In 2015, LiTerra Con changed the format into a convention of sci-fi and fantasy fans. Today, the convention has four main areas: Literature, Cinema & Animation, Visual Arts, and Science & Knowledge, as well as various activities in connected fields. LiTerra Con has officially been named the International Festival of Fiction Worlds. It brings together more than more than 200 artists (writers, poets, editors, cinematographists, illustrators, scientists) and more than 1,000 fans every year. The convention is powered by the Creative Union LITERRA NGO and Zoryana Fortetsya literature union.
contact@li-terra.kiev.ua
http://li-terra.kiev.ua

 

Publishing NON STOP
(since 2013)

Publishing NON STOP student festival is a platform for exchanging publishing experience between students, professional publishers and all those involved in the business. It is an annual event held by young activists at the Kyiv University of Culture and Arts. The festival features representatives of the best Ukrainian publishing houses, graphic designers, founders of literature projects, book bloggers and many others are among the participants. Each program offers lectures on publishing and literature, book fairs, competitions, workshops in calligraphy, typography, and the making of paper and pop-up cards. In addition to the event that take place during the day, the festival offers night shows with music, poetry and films.
www.vydnonstop.in.ua
facebook.com/vydavnychiy.nonstop
vydnonstop@gmail.com