Соняшники/Sunflowers

By Christopher Bogart

On the morning of February 24, 2022, Vladimir Putin ordered Russian troops to begin a "special military operation" to "demilitarize and de-Nazify" the sovereign nation of Ukraine.

Why Ukraine? Russia and Ukraine are both Slavic countries, share the same orthodox religion and clergy. Many Ukrainians have relatives living in Russia, and man

• Language: English
• Publisher: Self Publishing
• Release date: May 11, 2024
• ISBN: 9798869371898

Book preview

Соняшники

Sunflowers

Poetry

Christopher Bogart

Art and Graphics

Beata Kurkul

Dedicated to the Brave People of Ukraine.

Слава Україні!

Slava Ukraine!

I don’t need a ride. I need more ammunition!

Volodymyr Zelenskyy

February 25, 2022

Table of Contents

Introduction

Historical Background

Медведь

The Bear

Соняшники

Sunflowers

24 февраля

The 24th of February

Вигнанці

Exiles

Девід

David

Cкелети чорно-коричневого кольору

Skeletons in Black and Brown

Буча

Bucha

Євгеній

Yevhenii

Білі поліетиленові пакети

White Plastic Bags

Евгений

Yevgenii

Мама! Папа!

Mama! Papa!

Пушечное мясо

Cannon Fodder

Политика

Politika

Иван Александрович Леванков

Ivan Aleksandrovich Levankov

Пустые Силосы

Empty Silos

Опади

Fallout

Один день у Земля Нескорених

One Day in the Land of the Invincible

Ранок/ Morning

Полудень/ Afternoon

Вечір/ Evening

З руїн – Мрії

From the ruins – Dreams

Синій і жовтий

Blue and Yellow

Notes

Acknowledgements

About the Author

About the Artist

Introduction

This book of poetry attempts to depict, both visibly and verbally, the major elements that war brings to a country: not only the violence, destruction, and death that the invader inflicts, but the bravery and courage and endurance of the invaded.

This book of poetry is about the war in Ukraine.

After listening to hundreds of interviews with Ukrainians who have suffered destruction, displacement, and loss, as well as captured Russian soldiers, many of whom weren’t even aware of why they were sent to Ukraine, I decided to focus this book on the victims of this war – victims on both sides. This book is about the over 8 million Ukrainians who were forced to evacuate their homes and their country. It is about the Ukrainian cities that have been leveled by Russian missiles. It is about the Ukrainian dead. And yes, it is also about the Russian soldiers, most of whom were lied to, then forced to make choices – and to live, and die, with the consequences of those choices.

It is about a war to promote a lie. It is about a war that is really the war of only one man. It is Vladimir Putin’s War.

As I write this introduction, over one million young men are fleeing the Russian Federation for countries in the West to avoid what Putin is referring to as a partial military mobilization of over 300,000 men to fight in Ukraine. He has held a sham referendum in