"A powerful memoir... tells the story of Ukraine through the lens of her own family, from WWII occupation to Chernobyl - to the trauma of today."
The Rooster House is so many things at once, and all of them pull at my heart. The book is a seriously beautiful evocation of an imperiled nation and an account of a personal quest to retrieve the memories and secrets that families and states maintain. It’s a careful meditation on exile, on return and belonging, and what it means to be. And most of all it’s a paean to hope and home, written with such gentleness and deep adherence to emotional truth that to me its words become a fierceness to cast against harm, hardship and hurt. I loved it and it will haunt me for a long time.
author of H is for Hawk and Vesper Flights Helen Macdonald
[An] absorbing memoir. . . the Ukrainian-born journalist Victoria Belim returns to her homeland to find the missing pieces in the puzzle of her family’s history. . . Reading her book, it’s impossible to forget that however resilient the country may be, the pain currently inflicted will be felt for generations.”
The New York Times Book Review
"A moving personal journey unravelling complex family relationships, secrets and memories. Belim takes us into the homes of rural Ukrainians, illuminating their hopes, fears, struggles and traditions. Her love of the country and its people stands out in her sensitive depiction of their stoicism, hospitality and bonds... This is an honest, insightful and passionate book, that provides a beautiful insight into a nation beyond war headlines."
[An] absorbing memoir. . . the Ukrainian-born journalist Victoria Belim returns to her homeland to find the missing pieces in the puzzle of her family’s history. . . Reading her book, it’s impossible to forget that however resilient the country may be, the pain currently inflicted will be felt for generations.”—The New York Times Book Review “The Rooster House is so many things at once, and all of them pull at my heart. The book is a seriously beautiful evocation of an imperiled nation and an account of a personal quest to retrieve the memories and secrets that families and states maintain. It’s a careful meditation on exile, on return and belonging, and what it means to be. And most of all it’s a paean to hope and home, written with such gentleness and deep adherence to emotional truth that to me its words become a fierceness to cast against harm, hardship and hurt. I loved it and it will haunt me for a long time.”—Helen Macdonald, author of H is for Hawk and Vesper Flights “[A] poignant, gently unfolding . . . elegant family narrative of myriad characters traumatized by the deep-seated Russia-Ukrainian struggle. . . Throughout this powerful text, readers will encounter numerous satisfying layers.”—Kirkus, *starred review* “Victoria Belim’s poignant memoir, unveils the Ukrainian roots of a family mystery. . . Belim’s book, and her work with Ukrainian refugees in Brussels, honors Ukraine’s vibrant culture and the resilience of its people. . . The Rooster House is an intimate, down-to-earth memoir that reveals the corrosive effects of secrets and the healing power of truth.”—Foreword Reviews, *starred* review "A moving personal journey unravelling complex family relationships, secrets and memories. Belim takes us into the homes of rural Ukrainians, illuminating their hopes, fears, struggles and traditions. Her love of the country and its people stands out in her sensitive depiction of their stoicism, hospitality and bonds... This is an honest, insightful and passionate book, that provides a beautiful insight into a nation beyond war headlines."—Independent (UK) "Ethereal and transporting ... Ukraine comes alive through a tapestry of multisensory descriptions. Barbed by pain, this is a book as poignant as it is timely ... it reflects the indestructible strength of the Ukrainian people, who so fiercely hold on to hope."—Times Literary Supplement (UK) "A powerful memoir... tells the story of Ukraine through the lens of her own family, from WWII occupation to Chernobyl - to the trauma of today."—Irish Examiner "A haunting quest—beautifully told, with stunning momentum—traveling through place, history, and private memory on the fraying edge of Europe. I loved this book: the voice, the determination, the pace, the characters, the insights into exile and belonging, into remembering and forgetting. A book where the search for truth shines so brightly, The Rooster House feels like an instant classic: an essential book in these darkening times."—Sophy Roberts, author of The Lost Pianos of Siberia
★ 2023-04-04 A Ukrainian American journalist recounts the history of her Ukrainian family within the broader context of Russian aggression since the 1930s.
“I was born in Kyiv, but the first fifteen summers of my life unfolded in [Bereh] on the Vorksla River.” So writes Brussels-based journalist Belim in this poignant, gently unfolding tale. To her, the small village of Bereh was a “second home,” and her great-grandparents Asya and Sergiy were her “second set of parents.” Although she grew up in Chicago with her mother and stepfather, Belim pined for Bereh, yet she rarely visited—until 2014, when Russia seized Crimea and war broke out. Spurred by the rabid pro-Soviet stance of her uncle Vladimir, her father’s older brother, who goaded her with anti-Western propaganda, the author decided she needed to return to the Ukraine of her youth and reconnect with her aging grandmother Valentina, who lived in Kyiv but spent her summers in Bereh. The author writes movingly about helping Valentina with her cherry orchard and extensive garden and cooking traditional Ukrainian meals while weaving in painful memories of Soviet oppression—her relatives’ surviving the Holodomor of 1932-1933, when 4 million Ukrainian peasants died due to Stalin’s disastrous collectivization policy. Belim also writes about how, during the political purge of 1937, her uncle Nikodim inexplicably disappeared after being interrogated at the secret Soviet police headquarters called the Rooster House. “I thought of this uncle who had fought for a free Ukraine and who had paid the highest price as a kindred spirit,” she writes, “and I wanted to restore him to his rightful place in the family story.” While Valentina refused to revisit this haunting history, Belim was able to access Nikodim’s files and discover the truth. Throughout this powerful text, readers will encounter numerous satisfying layers.
An elegant family narrative of myriad characters traumatized by the deep-seated Russia-Ukrainian struggle.
"A haunting quest—beautifully told, with stunning momentum—traveling through place, history, and private memory on the fraying edge of Europe. I loved this book: the voice, the determination, the pace, the characters, the insights into exile and belonging, into remembering and forgetting. A book where the search for truth shines so brightly, The Rooster House feels like an instant classic: an essential book in these darkening times."
author of The Lost Pianos of Siberia Sophy Roberts
"Ethereal and transporting ... Ukraine comes alive through a tapestry of multisensory descriptions. Barbed by pain, this is a book as poignant as it is timely ... it reflects the indestructible strength of the Ukrainian people, who so fiercely hold on to hope."
Times Literary Supplement (UK)