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Anthology introduces new voices and a century of hidden stories:

Kobzar’s Children: A Century of Untold Ukrainian Stories

Publication date: June 1, 2006

From the cover:
The kobzars were the blind minstrels of Ukraine, who memorized the epic poems and stories of 100 generations. Traveling around the country, they stopped in towns and villages along the way, where they told their tales and were welcomed by all. Under StalinÆs regime, the kobzars were murdered. As the storytellers of Ukraine died, so too did their stories.

Kobzar’s Children is an anthology of short historical fiction, memoirs, and poems written about the Ukrainian immigrant experience. The stories span a century of history; and they contain stories of internment, homesteading, famine, displacement, concentration camps, and this new century’s Orange Revolution. Edited by Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch, Kobzar’s Children is more than a collection; it is a moving social document that honors the tradition of the kobzars and revives memories once deliberately forgotten.

MARSHA FORCHUK SKRYPUCH is the author of many books for children, including Silver Threads, Enough, The Hunger, and Hope’s War. Her novel about the Armenian Genocide, Nobody’s Child, was nominated for the Red Maple Award, the Alberta Rocky Mountain Book Award, and the B. C. Stellar Award; and it was listed by Resource Links as a Best Book. Marsha has been honored by the World Federation of Ukrainian Women’s Organizations as a Canadian Ukrainian Woman of Influence. The stories and poems in Kobzar’s Children were written by a diverse group of people who first responded to Skrypuch’s publications and eventually came to share their own stories via email.
The stories are arranged in chronological order and include:

A Home of Her Own: A true story set in the early 1900s by the late Olga Prychodko, about her mother’s misconceptions about immigrating to the wilds of Canada’s west.

Andriy’s Break: An internment story set during WWI and inspired by true events written by well-known story collector, Danny Evanishen.

It’s Me, Tatia: An old woman reflects on lost love and fateful decisons as she remembers a summer long past, during the Winnipeg Strike. Written by award-winning short fiction writer, Brenda Hasiuk.

The Rings: Inspired by true events, a story of one child’s escape from the 1930s Ukrainian Famine, written by Marsha Skrypuch.

The Red Boots: A slice of prairie homestead life in the late 1930s and based on an incident in her own father’s childhood, this is the first children’s story that Marsha Skrypuch ever wrote.

A Song for Kataryna: How could someone just disappear? Well known storyteller Linda Mikolayenko peels back the horrific details of her immigrant aunt’s disappearance layer by layer in this beautifully written story.

Auschwitz: Many Circles of Hell: Is Stefan Petelycky’s memoir of his inprisonment in the notorious Auschwitz concentration camp during WWII because of his involvement in OUN.

A Bar of Chocolate: This humorous tale by first-time writer, Natalia Buchok is about how her own father’s quest for a bar of chocolate in a post WWII DP camp leads him to dress as a girl and go on a date with an American soldier.

Bargain: Is a humorous story with wry character sketches, set in the mid-1950s in the Warwaruk’s meat market and general store in Glenavon SK. Written by award winning author, Larry Warwaruk.

Candy’s Revenge: Set on a prairie farm in the 1950s, this story is about a city girl visiting her country cousin and how an innocent prank had unexpected consequences. Written by first-time writer, Cornelia Bilinsky.

Changing Graves: Is a story based on a real incident in the 1970s about how a bizarre old-world request that a loved one’s grave be moved closer to other relatives, ends in black comedy. Written by well-known children’s entertainer, writer and poet, Sonja Dunn.

Christmas Missed: Is Nash Holos producer, Paulette MacQuarrie’s first publication credit and is about how a Canadian teen travels to Ukraine during the Orange Revolution and how missing Christmas with his own family ends up teaching them all about the real meaning of family.

In addition to the above twelve stories, the anthology contains a number of poems, including one written by Kim Pawliw, when she was 15. It is a tribute to her grandmother, who was interned as a child in Spirit Lake Internment Camp during WWI. Kim wrote the poem in French and translated it herself into English. Both versions are included.
There are also poems by Sonja Dunn and Linda Mikolayenko. The anthology also includes photographs supplied by the contributors and also supplied by people from across the country.

Here’s the cover:

http://tinyurl.com/kyf3f

I am on the very last chapter of Daughter of War!! Should be finished tonight or tomorrow. Yippee!!!!

And just in time, seeing as Aram’s Choice and Kobzar’s Children are both due out in June. I have already been getting oodles of phone calls and emails re articles and events for these two books. More on that later …

I have promised myself that when I’m finished writing the manuscript for Daughter of War that I will reward myself by carving out some time to make pysanky — Ukrainian written eggs. I have already bought a lovely array of dyes and have also got about 18 beautifully smooth eggs in the refrigerator, waiting to be processed.

And yesterday, my father dropped by with a fresh turkey egg. It’s perfectly smooth and a fair bit bigger than an extra large egg. I’ll have to practice on the regular eggs before I tackle this one.

I wrote 3000 words yesterday and the same today, but I also deleted 3000 words over the last few days. I’m so close to the end of this novel that I can taste it. (It doesn’t taste like raw eggs …….)

I am so very pleased. Another one of my kidcritters has received a contract offer. I won’t use her last name or say who the publisher is yet because the contract isn’t yet signed. But this has been a stellar year for private kidcritters.

In case you’re wondering what private kidcrit is, follow the link to Books and Writers Community and you can find out. Books and Writers is the oldest literary community on the internet. It actually predates the internet. I have been the section leader for the two children’s writing sections there for more than ten years now. One of the sections is out in the public — YA/Children’s Lit — and the other — Private Kidcrit — is hidden. One must ask my permission to be granted entry. That’s why my avatar here holds a wand. In the last few months, three of my kidcritters have received contracts. Congratulations, James, Pat and now, Marina!! And Linda’s first book is coming out in September and Kate’s two books are coming out soon and Amy’s agent loves her newest manuscript.

What can I say? Private Kidcrit rocks.

I am proud of the fact that my Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, has officially recognised the fact of the 1915 Armenian Genocide.

This action has not been without repercussions. See this story for background info:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/realitycheck/20060509gray.html

I wish the Turkish government would come to terms with the fact of the Armenian Genocide. Blackmailing countries into denial doesn’t change history. I am not an Armenian and I am not Turkish. When I began my initial decade of research into the events of 1915, I had no preconceived ideas. What I found were hundreds of first-hand survivor accounts of Armenians. Every single Armenian in Canada today lost a family member during the genocide. How can that be denied?

And what also must be acknowledged is that this was a government action. These were not isolated incidents initiated by individuals. What also must be acknowledged is that there would have been no survivors had it not been for the heroic Muslims — Turks, Kurds and Arabs — who saved Armenians and risked their own lives doing so.

The F&Gs are in! That means the book isn’t much far behind.

“F&Gs” sounds rude, but what it means is “folded & gathereds” — or the pages themselves printed and collated but not yet sewn or bound.

And I ordered a whole whack of postcards today with the Aram’s Choice cover. I even ordered 50 magnets.

I like to have postcards on hand with all of my books listed on the back and also my website and contact info. I use them like a business card but also give them to kids when they want autographs. Much better than signing a scrap of paper (or someone’s hand or arm …..)

I have been getting my postcards from a place in Toronto, but I found a cheaper and QUICKER place (and may I add — much more polite place?)

Here’s the website of the nice new fast place:

http://www.vistaprint.ca

I am a former dog owner. We had a German Shepherd when I was a kid, and I had Pepper, my dear Miniature Schnauzer, for nearly 15 years.

I know that dogs need to run. And I also know that they’re woman’s best friend, but…

I resent it when I’m on a walk and a big unfamiliar unleashed dog comes bounding up at me. The dog MIGHT be harmless and MIGHT be friendly, and invariably, the owner will say, “He won’t hurt you.”

I’m sure most are completely harmless. But when Pepper was just a pup, he was attacked by two large unleashed dogs just as the owner was saying, “They wouldn’t hurt a flea.”

Pepper nearly died. He had puncture wounds all around his neck and down his back. I literally had to beat the dogs off him. After that, I began to carry a stick as protection.

I don’t have a dog anymore, but I do take 10 kilometer brisk walks three or four times a week. There are beautiful walking trails all over Brant County and I have walked on many of them. Usually, when a person with a dog approaches, they’ll quickly leash the dog til I pass. In addition to this being the law, it is also common courtesy.

A few years ago, I was jogging down the street. An elderly neighbour was walking her dog on the other side of the street. I was quite a ways away, but the dog pulled the neighbour, got away from her grasp, and lunged at me. The dog bit me in the butt.

Now I’m not one to give up on my exercise easily, so I continued my run. When I got home, I realized that I had blood down my leg and a puncture wound in my butt. I called the neighbour and she told me I was a liar. She then said that if the dog did indeed bite me, then it was my fault for running past the dog. I further inconvenienced her by reporting the incident to the police and from then on, the dog had to be muzzled. I wasn’t so much worried for my butt as I was for the very small children in our neighbourhood.

Years passed with no more bad dog (or should I say bad dog OWNER) incidents.

Then a few weeks ago, a black lab bounded, unleashed, down one of my favourite rail trails. I stood stock still, holding my breath.
The dog bounded past me. The owner passed thirty feet later. I said to her, “I would appreciate it if you would leash your dog.”

She said to me, “He won’t f-ing hurt you.”

Hmmm. Very pleasant.

Since then, I have seen her a number of times, and she seems to take pleasure in having the dog bound right up to me while she lollies along, not even watching her dog. She has an extraordinary vocabulary of obscenities too, which she uses as she passes. Perhaps a muzzle is in order.

I got a photo of her and her unleashed dog last week. And I have reported her. HA!

Brantford Book Camps have their website up. Check it out. Go to my website at:

http://www.calla.com

and click on Bookcamps.

A version is also posted on the Wilfred Laurier University site here:

http://cubic.wlu.ca/page.php?grp_id=818&s_id=2423

The Hamazkayin Armenian Educational and Cultural Society hosted a wonderful event in honour of my novel, Nobody’s Child, on Sunday.

This event was unlike any I have ever been to. For much of the proceedings, I sat in the audience and listened. The master of ceremonies talked about my novel and my background and the fact that I’m not Armenian. Then he introduced a group of elementary students who had volunteered to be readers. Then he introduced Professor Lorne Shirinian, who is a writer, Armenian historian, and son of a Georgetown Boy.

Lorne got up and did a “review” of Nobody’s Child. I don’t mean the sort of review that you read in the paper. It was more like a detailed dissection of the novel. When he reached certain points, he would ask one of the students to get up and read a selection from my novel that illustrated his point.

It was a moving experience for me to sit in the audience and to listen to this. It was obvious that Lorne admires Nobody’s Child and his perceptive interpetation was interesting for me to listen to. The students’ readings were moving too. It was all the more moving because Lorne and the students had all lost family in the real life Armenian Genocide.

As I listened, I found myself close to tears. The characters in Nobody’s Child have been in my heart and mind for nearly 20 years now. They are real people to me. The selections chosen were the most heart-rending ones: those most difficult to write.

Then it was my turn to speak. I simply said a few thanks and then suggested people ask questions. The common theme of all the questions was, “What made you write about the Armenian Genocide when you’re not Armenian?” and “These characters, the setting, the geography is so accurate. How did you manage that?” Others wanted to know why I wouldn’t have written about a tragedy that was more accessible, like the Holocaust.

I explanined that this story made me write it. I did not go out in search of it. When I first interviewed Carl Georgian for a magazine profile way back in the late 1980s, I had never heard of the Armenian Genocide and didn’t know about the Georgetown Boys. What he told me of his father’s experiences chilled me to the bone. I couldn’t sleep at night because so many questions were swirling around my brain. That one interview started me on a ten year quest for information and answers. And it resulted in many books. In addition to Nobody’s Child, there is The Hunger, published in 1999 that also touches on the Armenian Genocide. And in June, Aram’s Choice will be published, and next year, Call Me Aram. And I am currently writing Daughter of War, the sequel to Nobody’s Child.

I hope that by illuminating the lives of these characters, I can put these ghosts to rest. What we forget, we are bound to repeat.

The reason I write about this and not a genocide that is more “accessible” is because the Armenian Genocide was the first genocide of the 20th century. It was shoved under the carpet and forgotten. Perhaps if that hadn’t been done, other 20th century genocides would have been prevented by public uproar.