mysiak

The Factory by poet and prose writer Ihor Mysiak, translated by Yevheniia Dubrova and Hanna Leliv, was published in its original Ukrainian in 2022, dedicated to the author’s friend who was killed by Russia while defending his home. The following spring, Ihor himself was also killed by Russia, and a global community came together to further share his deeply poetic and insightful words.

Atmospheric and meditative, Mysiak’s staccato Ukrainian storytelling paints an evocative tale of a motley and rather strange gathering of men who restore a broken-down factory aside an old, forgotten village to build and sell electronic machines assured to cause happiness. Though smoothly woven between pleasantries and mishaps, often calming, and frequently amusing, there is a deeply cutting edge of satire, fury, and rebellion to this meandering tale. In all of this, The Factory builds its own modern parable to remind the reader of love, community, and the joys of every single day, and the need-the urgency-to protect them.