Use Resources: Ukrainian Reading Lists and Information

When there is a major world event, readers and library patrons turn to books to understand what is happening. We at the public library know this, but do not always have time to make lists  in real time because of everything else we have to do on a day to day basis.

This is why I advocate for RA workers to use resources, especially ones that are aimed directly at readers and are driven by clicks like Book Riot. We should be leveraging their desire to attract readers for our advantage and to enhance our services to our readers.

I always advocate for Book Riot as the first place to go for the bookish connection to current events or trends, and this case is no different. Click here for their list of books about he Russia-Ukraine conflict.

But another place I went to look for articles about Ukrainian literature was Lit Hub. You can click here for a long list, that goes back to 2016 of articles and book reviews dealing with Ukrainian issues and literature. LitHub regularly covers international authors and translation, so they are a good bet for any non-American book info.

I was happy to see one of my favorite Ukrainian novels-- Death and the Penguin-- and its author-- Andrey Kurkov profiled on the site [January 2022]. My first generation Ukrainian American husband bought this book for me as soon as a paperback was available in English and I loved it.

There is a lot of information that you can use to create digital and in person displays and reading lists for your patrons. You do not need to reinvent the wheel. Go to the experts and pass the information on-- just like you would do for nonfiction requests.