A stunning account of life in a time of war. If this doesnt make you look up from your screen to reflect on Ukraine, then nothing will often heart-rending this is far more than history, invaluable as his detailed reporting is. As well as a reckoning with Russia, it is also a reflection on humanity in any war -- Alec Russell * Financial Times * What role for the artist in times of catastrophe? An important book and a painful piece of history brilliant -- Luke Harding * Observer * A vivid account of invasion and the struggle to find the words to describe a new reality: war * Financial Times * A harrowing recount of life as a Ukrainian during the first months of Russias invasion a timely reminder of its ever-presence for the millions living through it. It is, in that sense, a book not about Ukraine but about Ukrainians. . . it will compel you to care * Independent * In The Language of War, the author himself is the eyewitness the book brims with horror Mykhed wields a skilful, angry pen * Economist * A detailed, on-the-ground account, reminding us of the atrocities that are changing life in Ukraine forever The Language of War eats into the mind like phosphorus -- Robin Ashenden * Spectator * Mykhed focusses on how culture and, in particular, language have become important theatres of war a clever, passionate book -- Roger Boyes * The Times * Before 24 February 2022, writer Oleksandr Mykhed and his wife, Olena, had an enviable life. In 2018 theyd bought a three-storey townhouse in Hostomel, a suburb of Kyiv. On Saturdays, theyd go out for brunch and walk their dog in the forest... Then came 24 February... Within less than a week, life had completely transformed... The Language of War is a book written in the moment, charting the first year of Russia's invasion... scattering fragments of his exploded past through the brutal reality of a grindingly violent present -- Charlotte Higgins * Observer * Each piece of writing here helps us to understand a reality that we can and must repair. This book has helped me and will help anyone who wishes to understand war -- Timothy Snyder I admired it so much because of the language: the precision of it, the shock so fresh... one would rather that the book was never written because of the circumstances, but it is such a superb book -- Roddy Doyle
