Dmytro Verbitsky, an impoverished Ukrainian aristocrat, is actively engaged in the WWI, the Civil War and the WWII. Despite the cruelty of Stalin’s regime, he manages to raise a loving family, avenges his wife’s rape, learns to understand and forgive his father’s suicide, and nurtures hopes for Ukraine’s independence.
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About the Author
Mila Komarnisky, a Canadian citizen, spent her childhood in the eastern part of Ukraine. She has a Ph.D. degree in nutrition and metabolism from the University of Alberta, Canada, and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Diploma from the Kharkiv Veterinary and Animal Husbandry Institute in Ukraine. As a Doctor of Philosophy, she was invited to work as a postgraduate researcher at the Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine at Louisiana State University. After an illness, she retired, took a novel writing course at the Winghill Writing School, Ontario, Canada, and is now pursuing a career as a novelist.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Literary Work with a Remarkable and Passionate Love Story,
This review is from: Wretched Land (Paperback)
Mila Komarnisky's Wretched Land is the evocative tale of a family that survives the odds and relies on love to carry them through the horrific events of 20th century Ukranian life. It is the story of a nation, told through the riveting and remarkable love story of a couple that faces insurmountable odds and tragedy.Dmytro Verbitsky is an impoverished aristocrat who marries Khrystina, whose wealthy, land-owning family disapproves of her marriage, having previously arranged a marriage between Khrystina and their selection for her husband, the wealthy Pylyp Pokotailo, believing her to be "too young to make decisions" about her life. Khrystina tells her family that she is prepared for a life of hard work and refuses to dissolve her marriage, which they believe to be a mistake. Her family disowns her, telling her that she no longer has a mother or a father and sends her away. After her family's betrayal, Dmytro embraces Khrystina's shoulders and tells her, `Do not cry, my love. I am your family now and forever.'" It is this indivisible union that epitomizes their relationship and will guide them through the trials of marriage. Through it all, their remarkable and passionate love buoys them and withstands every possible test and heartbreak, as Dmytro holds true to his promise to be her family forever. The couple faces World War I, Civil War, World War II, and Stalin's regime, among other tragic circumstances; however, Dmytro remains "strong-willed... so long as he had Khrystina by his side." In cold and harsh times, they raise a family that is filled with love and compassion, maintaining their hope for a better future for the Ukraine and for their family. Komarnisky provides readers with a truly great literary work, inspired by history, interwoven with a tapestry of deeply moving themes, unparalleled in our generation--for this is the creation of literature rather than the mere creation of a story. Wretched Land is heart-rending, moving, impossible to put down, and even more impossible to forget.
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Worthy Read,
By
This review is from: Wretched Land (Paperback)
The novel is a heart-wrenching and moving account of life in Ukraine during the tumultuous 20th century. The title is more than appropriate. Sincerely told, it's a saga of the Verbitsky family living in rural Ukraine through the hardships and vicissitudes of peasant life starting as early as the first decade of the century and up to the time of Ukraine's independence in 1991. Wars, famine, Stalin's oppression, political gamble of various communist leaders - it is like reading history and fiction all in one. The historical aspect is covered aptly and succinctly, giving the vivid picture of political and social climate's changes throughout the century. As one who was born and lived my first 25 years in Ukraine, I know what the author means when she goes right to the point about Moscow's influence: "The government is like a shoe, and the party is like a foot in that shoe. The shoe moves only in the direction that the foot sets off".On a personal level, it's a touching love story. With all the talk about every other family being dysfunctional nowadays, it was a relief to read about one that was not, about the relationship that was solid as a rock, about the devotion that endured unimaginable hardship and never wavered. And that goes not just for the couple but also for their 10 children, who all functioned as one indestructible unit in the face of one adversity after another. The motive of love for their land and desire to own and cherish even a small piece of that famously fertile Ukrainian soil comes through with clarity throughout the novel.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Amazing!!!!!!!!!!,
This review is from: Wretched Land (Paperback)
I personally hate reading!!!!!!! But the second I picked up this book, I couldn't put it down!!!!! My husband is Ukrainian and I always wanted a little glimpse of what it would have been like there and this book gave it to me!!!! The suffering and hardships that they had to go through is just unbelieveable! I couldn't imagine having to go through any of that from famine to war to rape and everything in between.This is just an amazing novel and I think that everyone should give it a read!!!! Mila you wrote an awesome book!!! cant wait for your next one!!!!! :)
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