Oleh Kryshtopa
(Олег Криштопа)
Born and raised in Western Ukraine, Oleh is in many respects the father of contemporary Ukrainian creative nonfiction. He is the author of eight books of prose, which include novels, creative nonfiction, and collections of literary reportage, as well as co-author of three additional nonfiction books. In 2013, Oleh was the first winner of the new Samovydets Literary Reportage Award in Ukraine for his travelogue Ukraine: Scale 1:1 and has served as a member of the award’s jury since. In this capacity, he has helped foster and mentor a new generation of journalists in Ukraine, whose goal is to write highly engaging and vivid literary reportage on par with that of their European counterparts. Oleh’s more recent nonfiction has focused heavily on the war in Ukraine and the country’s war-torn East, though he continues to maintain an informed balance in his depictions of the country enlarge. He has been working as a journalist since 2000 and is currently a lead correspondent for Ukraine’s 5 Kanal (Channel 5) television station. He lives in Kyiv.
Born 1978 in Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine.
Currently resides in Kyiv, Ukraine.
Ukraine: Scale 1:1
2013 Samovydets Literary Reportage Award
The author, in response to a job offer in Kyiv, sets off on a journalistic journey that, years later, is yet to come to an end. The result of those years of travel assignments and wanderings, the collection Ukraine: Scale 1:1 is more of a collage than a traditional travelogue. Sometimes alone and sometimes in the company of friends, and always on a quest to understand the Ukrainianness in both himself and others, this book is a look by Kryshtopa at Ukraine not in its entirety, but in patches, at a scale of 1:1. It’s loving, it’s candid, it’s somber and funny, and its narrative stretches from corner to corner of the country: from the villages of Carpathia to the radioactive zone of Chernobyl, from the nightlife of Odessa to the banks of the little river Zbruch. Ukraine: Scale 1:1 overflows with stories of the Holodomor, Soviet nostalgia, prostitutes, local artists, bandits, beggars, and noble men unbroken by Stalin’s camps. Through the countless stories, the history of Ukraine and its people unfolds and envelops the reader in the genuine affection the author feels for this land and his genuine admiration for its people.
Translation sample available upon request.
Key words: creative nonfiction, travelogue, history, national identity, journalism
Original publication: «Україна: масштаб 1:1», Tempora, 2013
Anticipated word count: 67,500
English rights holder: Author
