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Armenian National Committee of Canada

press release

World Premiere of “Aram’s Choice” in Ottawa

Ottawa – A novel about a group of young Armenian orphans, who were rescued from the Armenian Genocide and brought to Canada in 1923 and settled in Georgetown, Ont., was launched at the embassy of the Republic of Armenia on June 7. Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch, the author of “Aram’s Choice” attended the book’s premiere.

The main character of the novel is based on Kevork Kevorkian, one of the original “Georgetown Boys”—a group of 50 orphans who were settled in a southern Ontario farm in the early ‘20s. The novel is richly illustrated in colour by Muriel Wood.

Victoria Cop, master of ceremony and president of the Armenian Students Association of Ottawa, introduced Armand Hagopian, the charge d’ affaires of the embassy. The Armenian diplomat said Skrypuch’s writings are an important tool to educate school children—the future leaders of Canada—about the Armenian Genocide.

Aris Babikian, executive director of the Armenian National Committee of Canada (ANCC), introduce the author of “Aram’s Choice.” Babikian recalled that he had first met Skrypuch 16 years ago, and had collaborated with Marsha on many projects. He also acknowledged the author’s assistance to Aram Ayvezian when the latter was writing his memoirs as a survivor of the Armenian Genocide and his pioneering work on Hai Tad.

Skrypuch talked about the circumstances which introduced her to the Armenian Genocide and compelled her to write about the ethnic cleansing of Armenians from Ottoman Turkey from 1915 to 1923. She recalled that at the beginning the Georgetown Boys and other survivors had been cautious about talking to her. But once she had gained their trust she was welcomed and treated as one of the family. She also talked about her arduous early efforts to gather data on the Georgetown Boys and the Armenian Genocide and about the difficulties she faced in her efforts to publish her book before the breakthrough in 1999 of “The Hunger”—her first book on the Armenian Genocide. Since then she has published two more books “Nobody’s Child” (2003), and “Aram’s Choice” (2006).

The author was overcome with emotion when she read short passages from her three books. The passages encapsulated the suffering, the heroism and survival instincts of her characters.

During Q & A, Skrypuch said she limited her research to the testimonies of the survivors, missionaries, diplomats and other eye witnesses accounts and reports. She also stressed that although her books are fictions, they are based on real people and events.

At the end of reading, she presented Babikian a specially-printed poster of “Aram’s Choice”s cover jacket as a token of appreciation for the latter’s long-time support and friendship.

In appreciation of Skrypuch’s efforts, Armand Hagopian, charge d’ affaires of the embassy, presented the writer with a DVD of Canadian-Armenian opera singer Isabel Bayrakdaryan’s “Long Journey Home” and Dr. Garabed Khacherian survivor diary.

In addition to her published works, Skrypuch has two more books due for publication in 2007. “Call me Aram” will be a sequel to “Aram’s Choice” while “Daughter of War” a sequel to “Nobody’s Child.”

In sales, “Nobody’s Child” has been her most successful book. It was nominated for the 2005 Red Maple Award, the 2005 Alberta Rocky Mountain Book Award, the 2006 BC Stellar Award, and was listed by Resource Links as one of the best books of 2004.

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The ANCC is the largest and the most influential Canadian-Armenian grassroots political organization. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout Canada and affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCC actively advances the concerns of the Canadian-Armenian community on a broad range of issues.

Regional Chapters

Montréal – Laval – Ottawa – Toronto – Hamilton – Cambridge – St. Catharines – Windsor – Vancouver

I just got home from Vancouver at 1am this morning and as I write this, I am still in my nightgown. Is that bad, or what? I have, however, brushed my teeth and had a shower.

I did not have a chance to actually HOLD and see a copy of Kobzar’s Children until Paulette MacQuarrie, one of the contributors, picked me up from the airport. She had the cartons of books in her car but none were opened, so I borrowed her nail file and opened up one of the boxes as we were driving.

What a BEAUTIFUL book. I am biased, but still. The font is open and inviting and the pages are a lush ivory. The cloth cover is chocolate brown with gold leaf and the dust jacket is beautiful. The stories and poems and photos all fit together like pieces of a puzzle.

The Friday event was packed. Every chair was filled. The one on Saturday afternoon was more intimate, but still we sold a whack of books!

It was awesome to have a visit with fellow contributors Paulette MacQuarrie, Danny Evanishen and Stefan Petelycky. I had met Paulette and Danny before, but this was the first time I had met Steve. He is a lovely man. A true gentleman.

We all read excerpts from our stories, but Steve couldn’t read his aloud. I understand: his is about his time as a prisoner at Auschwitz. I read his excerpt for him, and I was nearly in tears.

It was also emotional for me because I had just received an email on a writing listserv from a person who questioned whether the Ukrainian Famine ever happened, and also said that he doubted a Ukrainian would have been a prisoner at Auschwitz. Sigh. I guess that shows why this anthology is so necessary. If you don’t tell your own stories, someone else will tell their version for you.

Beautifully illustrated children’s novel touches on the Armenian Genocide of 1915

Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch first heard about the Armenian Genocide seventeen years ago while doing research for a magazine article about the first “Georgetown Boys” — a group of 47 Armenian orphans who were rescued by Canada in 1923 and were housed and schooled at a farm in Georgetown Ontario.

After interviewing the son of a “Georgetown Boy,” Marsha was left with more questions than answers. For example, why were all of the rescued orphans male? Why were they all between the ages of eight and twelve? What happened to their parents? What happened to their sisters?

The search for answers launched Marsha on a decade-long path of discovery. She read everything she could find about the Armenian Genocide, including missionary diaries, personal accounts, history texts and newspaper accounts. She also found a treasure-trove of information at the Multicultural Historical Archives of Ontario which houses a collection of taped oral interviews with the “boys” themselves. She initally listened to these interviews in the early 1990s but was not allowed to listen to them all because some of the interviews were kept confidential until all of the “boys” had died. The last Georgetown Boy died several years ago, and so Marsha went back and listened to the rest of the tapes.

What she discovered gave her the material to write Aram’s Choice, the story of one orphan’s journey from Turkey in 1923 all the way to Georgetown Ontario. The book is based on true events.

Here’s the cover:

http://www.fitzhenry.ca/detail.aspx?ID=9541

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