You Don't Know What War Is

Yeva speaks a truth that all of us, young and old, must listen to. – Michael Morpurgo, author of War Horse
The most important story of our times told from the inside by the best narrator: a wise twelve-year-old girl. – Viv Groskop, comedian, writer and podcaster
This book has touched my heart in a way that I am finding hard to put into words. Everyone, absolutely everyone, should read it. You will love Yeva. – Christy Lefteri, No.1 international bestselling author of The Beekeeper of Aleppo
This is one of those extraordinary books that will haunt readers for a very long time. * Irish Times *
[A] heartbreaking revelation of war through a child’s eyes. * Telegraph *
This is the eloquently written and important hour-by-hour account of what happened on and after February 24, 2022, when Yeva Skalietska woke up to the sound of explosions in her home town of Kharkiv, near Ukraine’s Russian border. She had just turned 12 and had lived an ordinary, happy life until that moment. Her diary tells of the days of taking refuge in basements, then fleeing to western Ukraine and Hungary before she and her grandmother found safety and a new home in Dublin. The book has contributions from some of Yeva’s friends who are still in Ukraine, and is a rare and moving chronicle of war from the point of view of children. * The Sunday Times *
This is an important book – a recording of history written by Yeva, a young person, whose words and feelings reflect so many who rarely get an opportunity to be heard. A herstory of Ukraine for posterity. – Olia Hercules, Ukrainian chef and food writer
Yeva is a young Ukrainian girl and this is her diary. It starts on February 14, her 12th birthday, and chronicles her flight from war alongside her grandmother, ending up in Ireland. It’s written with honestly and heart, and gives an important child’s eye view of war. Children’s books: 56 cracking reads to keep kids entertained this Christmas * Irish Independent *
The heart-stopping account of the war in Ukraine, You Don’t Know What War Is by 12-year-old Yeva Skalietska, who escaped to Ireland, is a vital read by everyone. Teenage page-turners * Irish Independent on Sunday *
I wish Yeva Skalietska hadn’t felt the need to write this book but I’m glad that she did write it – because it is exhilarating, shattering, heartbreaking, brilliant. It’s an extraordinary book. – Roddy Doyle, Booker Prize-winning author
Yeva’s diary allows the reader to experience war through the eyes of a child and her story will endure long after this terrible war ends. * Lord Alf Dubs, refugee rights campaigner *
I’ll never forget the first time Yeva read extracts from her diary to me in a refugee shelter at the start of the full-scale war. With this book, we all get that privilege. – Paraic O’Brien, Channel 4 News reporter
It resonates beyond the particular to convey what it means to lose everything suddenly, the horror of bombardment and the need to make those who run from danger safe. * The Sunday Times *
Powerful and poetic, this beautiful book shows the very worst and the very best of humanity. Essential reading. – Katya Balen, Carnegie Medal-winning author
A book to make you count your blessings. * The Daily Mail *
Many children need to process the times they are living in too, however, in age-appropriate ways. Older readers might relate to a first-hand account by Ukrainian Yeva Skalietska. You Don’t Know What War Is (Bloomsbury) traces the 12-year-old’s journey from happy normality through tumult, traversing western Ukraine and Hungary to find safety in Dublin * The Observer *
Skalietska’s story, told in the format of a personal diary, brings the horror of war into sharper focus than a dispassionate news report ever could…most reader won’t know first-hand what war is – but thanks to accounts like hers, we are reminded how precious that ignorance is. * The Big Issue *

Yeva Skalietska is a teenage Ukrainian girl who grew up living with her granny in Kharkiv, near the Russian border. She loves learning languages, bowling, playing the piano and painting. Yeva wrote a diary of her experiences of fleeing war in Ukraine. She now lives in Dublin, Ireland.

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