BOOK NOTES: Second collection of feuilletons by Olha Kuzmowycz is released (05/22/05)

BOOK NOTES

Second collection of feuilletons by Olha Kuzmowycz is released

"Pro Vchora i Siohodni" (About Yesterday and Today, Collected Sketches and Feuilletons) by Olha Kuzmowycz. Lviv-New York: published by the author, 2003. 310 pp. $10.

by Ika Koznarska Casanova

Journalist and editor Olha Kuzmowycz, who writes under the pseudonym "O-KA" in Svoboda, the Ukrainian-language newspaper published by the Ukrainian National Association, released a second collection of her writings and feuilletons titled "Pro Vchora i Siohodni" (About Yesterday and Today). The first collection, titled "Pro Tse i Te" (About This and That) appeared in 2000 (see The Ukrainian Weekly, October 22, 2000).

Mrs. Kuzmowycz, who, since joining the editorial staff of Svoboda in 1981, has penned some 1,250 feuilletons which have appeared under the heading "Pro Tse it Te," is one of the most active journalists on the Ukrainian scene, and an active member of Ukrainian community organizations, principal among them, the Shevchenko Scientific Society, where she is a member of the board, and Plast Ukrainian Scouting Organization, in which she has held key leadership positions.

Mrs. Kuzmowycz's writings, which reflect her varied life experiences, constitute a chronicle of the times: of pre-war Lviv and the intelligentsia of which members of her family, the Fedaks and the Sheparovyches, were leading activists - including such historic figures in the socio-political life of the time as Yevhen Konovalets and Andriy Melnyk; the interim displaced persons-political refugee period; and the subsequent phase of the Ukrainian émigré experience and life in America. Her writings also serve as a personal commentary on topics of the day and as observations of everyday life.

Her writings encompass commentary on historic moments, as well as current events and mores, in addition to vignettes about notable personages and cultural activists. Among her subjects are colleagues of her own generation who, as post-World War II political refugees and émigrés, were among those instrumental in creating the infrastructure of Ukrainian community life in the United States and in instilling values and forging principles for its development.

Feuilletons that reference various aspects of the Ukrainian community in America often have a critical dimension which, as noted in the introduction and foreword to the book, were welcomed by some readers, while others found them harder to acknowledge.

"Pro Vchera i Siohodni," which makes connections across time, space and generations, is, as noted in the introduction to the book, akin to entries in a diary, that come to consitute a time capsule. At its core, these are observations written for future generations to convey a sense of how things were - on a personal level that reflect the particular milieu and ambiance of the author's socio-politically and culturally prominent family and her beloved native city of Lviv. As such they also are a personal memoir to be passed on to her children and grandchildren.

Concurrently, the work is also a reflection of what Lviv was like before the war and of its significance in terms of Ukrainian history and culture. The book is also a chronicle of the life of the Ukrainian diaspora in North America in its myriad aspects - tracing its life and its basic operative principles and values, on the individual level and as a "hromada," or community.

The introduction to the collection, titled "Zbirka Narysiv - 'Yak Kapsulka Chasu' " (A Collection of Short Essays [which serves] As a Time Capsule) is penned by Larissa Zaleska Onyshkevych, president of the Shevchenko Scientific Society in the United States (Ukrainian acronmyn, NTSh).

Presentations of the book were held at the Shevchenko Scientific Society in New York on October 30, 2004, and this year, on April 16, in Philadelphia under the auspices of Ukrainian National Women's League of America Branch 43.

Speaking about the author and her work on both occasions was poet and literary scholar Vasyl Makhno of New York. Readings of excerpts from the collection were rendered on both occasions by New York-based actor and director Ivan Bernatsky, national artist of Ukraine.

The book is available for $10 by writing to the author, c/o Svoboda, P .O. Box 280, 2200 Route 10, Parsippany, NJ 07054; or by calling (973) 292-9800, ext. 3072.

| Home Page |