VOICES FROM CHERNOBYL Svetlana Alexievich
Tertulias literarias Literatur Solasaldiak Literary Circle
Errenteriako Biblioteka 2019 / 04 / 16
Svetlana Alexievich Svetlana Alexandrovna Alexievich is an eminent Belarusian journalist and writer. Born in Stanislaviv, Ukraine during the Soviet era, she had the passion to write since a young age and began to nurture this interest by contributing to the school newspaper. Later, after completing her graduation, she began her career as a journalist and simultaneously pursued writing. In her writing career she has been able to document experiences and memories related to several events like the World War II, Downfall of the Soviet Union, The Afghan War, Chernobyl disaster etc. She believed in creating a history of human feelings rather than a mere account of the events and associated facts. A number of her works have been converted into theatre scripts and feature films. Svetlana Alexievich has received numerous awards from the government and private bodies, in appreciation for her literary work. She was the recipient of the 2015 Nobel Prize in Literature.
Selected Works ·(1985) War’s Unwomanly Face ·(1985) Last Witnesses: An Oral History of the Children of World War II ·(1991) Boys in Zinc ·(1997) Chernobyl Prayer: A Chronicle of the Future ·(2013) Secondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets
Voices from Chernobyl On April 26, 1986, the worst nuclear reactor accident in history occurred in Chernobyl and contaminated as much as three quarters of Europe.Voices from Chernobyl is the first book to present personal accounts of the tragedy. Journalist Svetlana Alexievich interviewed hundreds of people affected by the meltdown-- from innocent citizens to firefighters to those called in to clean up the disaster---and their stories reveal the fear, anger, and uncertainty with which they still live. Composed of interviews in monologue form, Voices from Chernobyl is a crucially important work of immense force, unforgettable in its emotional power and honesty.
Reviews ·“A chorus of fatalism, stoic bravery, and black, black humor is sounded in this haunting oral history. . . . The result is an indelible X-ray of the Russian soul.” -Publishers Weekly ·““Shocking
accounts of life in a poisoned world. And what
quintessentially human stories these are, as each distinct voice expresses anger, fear, ignorance, stoicism, valor, compassion, and love.” -Booklist (starred review)
Interesting links ·Official Web:
http://alexievich.info/en/ ·The Nobel Prize Web:
https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/literature/2015/alexievich/facts/
·The Guardian Interview: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/jul/21/svetlana-alexievich-interview ·History Today Article:
https://www.historytoday.com/archive/portrait-author-historian-svetlanaalexievich
·Our coordinator´s blog (ENG/ESP) https://donostiabookclub.blogspot.com