Books / Ukraine

The crowdfunder to send copies of the forthcoming Taproot book containing 100 translations, versions and responses to/of Odveig Klyve’s viral poem is still open - essentially, for every £10 donated we will send a free copy of the book to Ukraine for distribution, and all donations will go to Sunflower Scotland, who are bravely providing aid through direct action. We will print a list of all the donors in the book when the time comes. At this moment, with £460 donated, there are 46 books earmarked for Ukraine, and a full box holds 50. Can you please help us to fill it: https://gofund.me/e455b2a6

On March 14 2022, Norwegian poet Odveig Klyve posted a powerful, spontaneous poem on her personal Facebook page condemning Vladimir Putin and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Within days, it had been shared thousands of times and translated into 20 different languages. Since then, with the help of Shetland poet Robert Alan Jamieson, the poem has given birth to an online group amassing over 800 members from all across the world and made front-page headlines in the Norwegian press. The poem has now been translated into over 70 languages and dialects, with versions totalling over 100. Now, it is our honour to announce that Taproot Press will publish a single volume of each and every translation alongside Odveig's original: Skjelv Du På Handa, Vladimir? / Does Your Hand Shake, Vladimir?

All the profits from the sale of this volume will go to Edinburgh-based Sunflower Scotland , a volunteer association who provide vital aid in Eastern Ukraine, but we would like to do more. We believe that in Skjelv Du På Handa, Vladimir? / Does Your Hand Shake, Vladimir? we have something valuable still to send - a powerful, universal message condemning this Russian war which may well be of importance to those on the front line. A copy of this book, with its Ukrainian language versions as gateways into the poem, may well find many readers who will draw a sense of solidarity from it.

For this reason we have set up Free Books for a Free Ukraine to allow you to send copies of the book to the Ukrainian PEN to distribute around the country. Every donation will be forwarded to Sunflower Scotland, and as a reward for their gesture of support, those donating will themselves receive a copy. A donation of £10 will send one book to Ukraine, a donation of £20 will send two, and so forth. Every donor will have their name printed in the book in a list of subscribers, while every donor of £10 or over (from the UK, £20 or more from EU & the rest of the world) will receive a copy sent directly to their home.

The book is also be available to buy separately from the Free Books for A Free Ukraine crowdfunder: https://gofund.me/e455b2a6

Thank you for your support.