Serhiy Zhadan; trans. Reilly Costigan-Humes and Isaac Stackhouse Wheeler
The Orphanage by Serhiy Zhadan, translated from the Ukranian by Reilly Costigan-Humes and Isaac Stackhouse Wheeler, tells the story of Pasha, a thirty-five-year-old teacher in Ukraine. It takes place over a period of three days and chronicles the first phase of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Urged by his father, Pasha leaves the relative safety of his home to trek through areas captured by Russian-backed separatists to retrieve his thirteen-year-old nephew from an orphanage.
Pasha has made a concerted effort to remain apolitical. He tries to keep his head down and avoid conflict. He reiterates he has not taken sides in the war and thinks his neutrality offers him some protection. But he eventually realizes his neutrality is meaningless under the current circumstances and it offers no protection. This forces him to come to terms with his own feelings about the war.
His ordeal over the three days is harrowing. He has to dodge bullets, hide from tanks, ride in bullet-ridden buses and taxis through deserted neighborhoods, huddle next to strangers in crowded basements, see bombed-out buildings that have spilled their contents, step over severed human limbs, contend with shifting borders and check points, run from stray dogs, experience bouts of hunger and thirst, and recognize the face of trauma in the civilians he sees. He is interrogated by military personnel and has to choose his words carefully, cognizant of the fact they could kill him at any second. He is cautious when interacting with strangers, sensitive as to whether they speak Russian, Ukrainian, or have an accent in either language that may indicate to which side of the political spectrum they belong. And as if conspiring to make his journey even more challenging, the weather does not cooperate. Pasha has to trudge through snow, wade through mud, and contend with buckets of rain that soak his clothes and boots. Eventually, he arrives at the orphanage, retrieves his nephew, and the two make the harrowing journey back to their home.
The accumulation of detail paints a vivid picture of one man’s experience as he navigates a once familiar landscape that has been ravaged by war. The description is immersive and relentless. The sounds and stench of war are palpable, as is the smell of fear. The landscape is shrouded in a fog that severely restricts visibility and that serves as a metaphor for the confusion and uncertainty plaguing the situation.
This is not an easy read, but it is an important one, especially considering the current situation in war-torn Ukraine.