Author Zinaida Tulub spent a period of time living in exile in Kazakhstan in 1947-1956, during which she gave much thought to writing about Taras Shevchenko’s time in exile there approximately a century earlier. She wanted to celebrate his indomitable will and his burning desire to fight for the liberation of his nation, even while exiled.
Ms. Tulub began work on a historical novel about Shevchenko after returning to Kyiv in 1956. She was granted access to archival material and memoirs, and completed the novel in 1962. Written in Ukrainian, it was originally titled “On the Boundless Steppe Beyond the Urals.” This English translation, by Anatole Bilenko, was released in 2015.
The book has been described as “historically accurate and artistically convincing.” Ms. Tulub adheres strictly to the historical timeline of Shevchenko’s life in exile, tracing in detail each step on the poet’s biographical path.
Ms. Tulub was born in Kyiv in 1890 and was the granddaughter of an active member of the Ss. Cyril and Methodius Brotherhood, Alexander Tulub. She graduated from the Advanced Courses for Women, an educational establishment in Kyiv, in 1913. Although her earlier writing was in Russian, she switched to writing in Ukrainian during the Soviet era – a decision that did not sit well with Soviet authorities.
Her other works include “At the Crossroads,” an early novella in Russian, and another historical novel in Ukrainian, “Hunters of Men,” which is set in Ukraine in the early 17th century. Ms. Tulub also wrote poems, plays and screenplays, and translated works by various Ukrainian and French writers into Russian.
“The Exile” is available at online retailers such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble, or through the publisher at www.glagoslav.com.