Borderland: A Journey Through the History of Ukraine

Looking at the cover of this book, I immediately thought to myself that this is not Ukraine--not as I know her! The cover was an insightful indication of the biased rhetoric that was to follow.

The top cover photo is of "Local characters: Two paupers, one blind aged 70, the other sighted, aged 58, 1870s. Courtesy of State Historical Museum, Moscow."

The bottom image on the cover (and on the back cover) is by "Georgii Petrusov, Lunch in the Fields, (1934), Courtesy of Galerie Alex Lachmann, Cologne, 'The idealization of Russian family and collective...'"

Now, I ask the reader, why would a person put on a cover (and repeat on the back cover) of a book purporting to describe the history of Ukraine, photos from Russia and call the book "...A Journey through the History of Ukraine"?

The author's very obvious Russian slant/bias is apparent from not only the cover and page one of the book, where she opens with a quote from a Russian novelist and playwright, Mikhail Bulgakov (a Russian born in Kyiv, Ukraine to Russian parents), but continues throughout the book. Again, I ask why wasn't a quote used from a Ukrainian if the book deals with Ukrainian history? If the author wanted to quote Russians and use photos from Russia, why not write a book on Russia and give it a title with Russia in the name?

Chapter ten has a quote from Gogol. Most people still think, erroneously, that he is a great Russian writer. However, to her credit, Ms. Reid does state much earlier in the book (chapter three) that Gogol is a Ukrainian--Gogol (Hohol) was a Ukrainian born in the Poltava region of Ukraine. Gogol, a Ukrainian, became a great Russian writer--this anomaly resulted in studies over the decades. Edyta M. Bojanowska, Ph.D., Harvard University, offers her analyses of this nineteenth-century writer from a new perspective, giving convincing arguments and reflecting critical thought in the process--my review (Nikolai Gogol: Between Ukrainian and Russian Nationalism) is on Amazon.com.

Why not quotes from Ukrainians like Ivan Franko (a Ukrainian scholar, publicist, poet, political and civic leader, publisher, novelist, literary historian, and nationalist, who had Lviv University renamed in his honor. He had over 6,000 books in his personal library; he completed over 5,000 translations for sixty authors in 14 languages. In 1956, UNESCO sponsored the centenary of his birth, an event that was noted internationally.) Franko is just one example--why not quotes from Lesia Ukrainka, Olha Kobylianska, or other Ukrainians?

Ms. Reid likes to give her Russified version of events, followed by: "The Ukrainian version of events, of course..." which implies that the Ukrainian version is in all cases wrong and something to be dismissed and ridiculed.

She describes her drive "from Khortytsya Island in Zaporizhya: `Covered in snow, the countryside looked one-dimensional, like an over-exposed black-and-white photograph.'" Maybe Ms. Reid should have taken that photo and used the photograph on the cover of her book. It would have depicted the steppes of Ukraine and Ukraine's chornozem (on its website, the Embassy of Ukraine describes chornozem as meaning `black earth'--it has become internationally recognized and refers to Ukrainian soil, celebrated as the most fertile possible. Because of her fertile land, Ukraine was once known as the Breadbasket of Europe.).

As another example of disparaging discourse on Ukraine, Ms. Reid describes Shevchenko's grave: "was covered with a Cossack-style mound and marked with an oak cross. In the 1880s the wooden cross was replaced with an iron one, in 1931 with an obelisk, and in 1939 with a hideous monumental bronze statue, which still stands today." I propose to readers that the word "hideous" is Ms. Reid's description. That she thinks it's hideous is really of no interest to me. When I read a history of a country, I like to read the facts, not someone's opinion and biased description.

Her derogatory descriptions continue: "...OUN split in two--the more moderate `Melnykivtsi,' under the Civil War veteran Andriy Melnyk, and the fanatical `Banderivtsi', under the young head of OUN's terrorist unit, Stepan Bandera."

The Encyclopedia of Ukraine describes Stepan Bandera as a "revolutionary, politician and ideologue of the Ukrainian nationalist movement." The Encyclopedia of Ukraine describes Andrii Melnyk as a "military figure and political activist." I submit that the words "fanatical" and "terrorist unit" have no place in this discussion if it's to remain truly objective and depict historical events. The Encyclopedia of Ukraine is "the most comprehensive work in the English language on Ukraine, its history, people, geography, economy, and cultural heritage. This site was created and is updated/maintained by a team of scholars and editors from the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies (CIUS) (University of Alberta/University of Toronto). Hundreds of specialists from around the world have contributed and continue to contribute to the Encyclopedia."

An excellent source for impartial information on Ukraine's history is Professor Orest Subtelny's (published to international acclaim) Ukraine: a History. Orest Subtelny is a Canadian historian of Ukrainian descent, and a Professor at the Department of History and Political Science, York University, Toronto, Canada. The third edition (2000) is available for purchase on Amazon.com.

Imparting truthful information is one thing; imparting biased information is inexcusable. The author used credible sources/references to conveniently lure the unsuspecting reader into a complacent belief that the rest of the words that follow are objective reporting. Nevertheless, chapter six on "The Great Hunger" (Holodomor) is a good one, and merits reading. This could have been a remarkable "journey through the history of Ukraine"; unfortunately, the author squandered that opportunity by littering the roads with very obvious bias and subjective slants.--Mandrivnyk, Arlington Heights, IL, USA.

Good read, but somewhat biased... (1/2 people found this helpful)

Overall it is a good book derived from the authors experiences (& opinions) on Ukraine. The author obviously has a lot of knowledge about the subject - Ukraine in this case - based on her travel experiences, etc. But, I cannot help think that the book is somewhat biased.

I wouldn't qualify this as a history book. It's more like a "her story" book. I would love to see another book written about the same subject from a different prespective. Don't get me wrong, the book contains a lot of facts and useful information but I wouldn't qualify this as a history, or reference book.

On the other hand, it would be impossible to be completely neutral when writing about history. The author chooses to focus more on the tragedies & mishaps that have happened to the country and its people (it's undeniable that the country's history has been filled with those, but there is no reason to just concentrate on them). I suppose it's typical of today's mentality ( e.g., on the news) where people tend to concentrate more on the bad things that happen in a particular country (you'd hardly hear about some faraway country on the news until something bad/tragic has happened).

I also feel that because the author comes from western background, she tends to "look down" on the ways the Ukrainians handle their own affairs. Different strokes for different folks, as they say!

Whether Ukraine chooses to maintain close relationship with Russia, or whether it decides to build new relationship with other countries (Western Europe, America, etc.) it would be just as good for them. Either option will carry its rewards & costs. Both Russia and the Western European countries/America would have their own agendas/motives anyway - none of which will include a genuine concern for the welfare of Ukrainian people. However, the author, in a very subtle manner, tries to steer the readers in one direction in this book...Still overall it's a good book (not too many books are written about Ukraine out there!)

All the best to Ukraine!

Good read overall (17/17 people found this helpful)

I am a Ukrainian from Kyiv myself and I purchased the book while searching for a guide to my country for some friends of mine, who plan to visit. I would like to commend the author on her good work - the book is well-written and quite captivating (I started flipping through the pages and ended up reading the entire book). Also, it is clear a lot of background research went into it. Finally, I am thankful for the book as such as there is so little popular information on Ukraine published yet. Couple of clarifying remarks are still in order, in my opinion. Firstly, the depiction of Ukraine in the book is quite dated. Kyiv, for one, has changed dramatically since ten years ago (when the material of the book was gathered) - mostly for the better. Also, invariably for a non-scientific history book, a lot of views and perceptions of the author are subjective. That's what makes the book interesting and readable, but also that is why the book should not be used as a proper guide to a Ukrainian history (The Ukrainians: Unexpected Nation by Andrew Wilson is one of my picks, apart from the classical history books published by Ukrainian historians). My final comment is that Anna Reid seems to have discovered many Ukraines - Polish, Russian, Austrian, Jewish, Romanian ones (reflecting my country's history and the wonderfully diverse ethnic and cultural heritage), but I feel that Ukrainian Ukraine is yet to be fully discovered and appreciated by the author... Perhaps Anna should come and visit Ukraine again and update the book?

If only more history books were like this! (5/6 people found this helpful)

This is a lively account of the history of the Ukraine full of interesting anecdotes and details. The first chapter is about Kiev; it was fascinating to read how different it was in 1993 when the author went there, ten years on it is a lovely western city that bears little resemblance to the place she describes. Reading 'Borderland' gave my visit a historical perspective and filled in the gaps in my knowledge. It has a strong sense of narrative, so visiting the Ukraine isn't a prerequisite for enjoying the book.

History rather than Travel (7/7 people found this helpful)

I bought this book thinking it was a travel book, expecting to find descriptions of mountains, forests and adventures with bears and strange people. Instead it is a comprehensive history of an eastern European crossroads, an area that has been involved in very many political expansions, empires and revolutions. I'd never before seen this important chunk of history centred on this part of the world; I was amazed at how Anna Reid's very readable account made sense of many events about which I'd previously read as peripheral events.

Borderland: A Journey Through the History of Ukraine

Anna Reid

Reader Reviews:

Decidedly Disappointing--riddled with biased, subjective personal phrases and commentary throughout! (0/0 people found this helpful)

Good read, but somewhat biased... (1/2 people found this helpful)

Good read overall (17/17 people found this helpful)

If only more history books were like this! (5/6 people found this helpful)

History rather than Travel (7/7 people found this helpful)

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