Ігор Качуровський. Шлях невідомого

Ігор Качуровський

Work proposed for translation: 

Шлях невідомого
A novel (1956)
Length: 208 pp.
Copyright: Publisher: info@astrolabium.com.ua

Igor Kaczurowskyj (1918–2013) was a Ukrainian writer, poet, and literary scholar. He was born in Ukraine, but in the early 1930s, his family fled repression and moved to Kursk, where he graduated from the Pedagogical Institute. In 1942, he returned to Ukraine, but soon left for Austria, where he spent some time in camps for displaced persons. He later moved to Argentina, where he worked as a port railway worker for twenty years. During that period, he attended lectures at the university, actively collaborated with the Ukrainian press, published scientific works and literary texts, and later became a teacher. In 1969, he moved to Munich. There he continued his active scientific and literary activities, became a lecturer at the Ukrainian Free University, and worked as a literary reviewer for the Ukrainian bureau of Radio Liberty. Kaczurowskyj is a representative of neoclassicism in Ukrainian poetry as well as an important figure in poetic translation: he has translated the works of several hundred authors from most European languages into Ukrainian. He is also the author of numerous studies in literary criticism and textbooks on literary theory.

Because Deserters Are Immortal is the debut novel by Igor Kaczurowskyj, legendary journalist for Radio Liberty. First published in Munich in 1956, it became the author’s bestseller. It has been translated into English and German. It consists of twelve short stories — twelve episodes from the life of a young protagonist during 1941–1943. His family was repressed during collectivisation, but he himself managed to survive. He has high hopes for the German invasion of Ukrainian lands, hoping that liberation from the “Soviets” will bring positive changes. However, the behaviour of the Nazis in the occupied territories quickly destroys his illusions. So the main character has to constantly fight for his life, escaping from captivity and the occupying forces in order to survive amid the confrontation between communism and Nazism. This story of constant escape from mortal danger, told simply and concisely, leaves an impression of the indestructibility of the good in people, which saves them amid the cruelty and brutality of enemies on both sides of the front. This novel is not only the author’s reflection on historical events, but also an exploration of the complex problems of totalitarianism’s influence on society, its struggle with human individuality, and the humane and cruel behaviour of people in inhuman conditions.