Ukrainian publishers call for support after Russian attacks destroy 10m books

The Ukrainian Book Institute has called on the international publishing community to support Ukrainian publishers after Russian attacks in July and early August destroyed about 10m books and a significant share of the country’s book production capacity.

The institute said the attacks on publishing, printing and warehouse infrastructure had left some companies at risk of financial collapse. A major attack on 1 August hit warehouses belonging to the RNK-Ranok publishing group in Kharkiv, destroying approximately 8m books, following July attacks in Kyiv which led to the loss of more than 1.5m books. In all, the recent attacks have led to the destruction of approximately 30% of the volume of books produced annually in Ukraine.

The RNK-Ranok logistics centre, which stores books for the company’s many imprints, is also the distribution centre for the national bookselling chain KnyhoLand, which runs 51 shops and several websites.

Along with the estimated 8m books lost, a further 600,000 school textbooks were destroyed. The total loss has been preliminarily estimated at almost 1bn hryvnias (£16.5m).

“At this stage, we face the risk of the collapse of the entire book ecosystem,” said Oleksandra Koval, director of the Ukrainian Book Institute.

The institute is asking for donations to support Ukrainian publishers, and is calling on the international publishing community to work with Ukrainian publishers and raise awareness about Russian attacks on Ukrainian culture.

Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and now occupies about a fifth of Ukrainian territory.

On 16 August, a Russian attack on Kyiv led to a fire breaking out at the Pochaina book market, destroying several rows of stalls, books and vendors’ property. The Pochaina market, founded in 1997, was once one of Ukraine’s largest book markets, with hundreds of stalls and books from more than 120 publishers.

The institute said the book industry was of “strategic importance” to Ukraine, preserving and promoting Ukrainian culture and giving the country’s voice a platform at home and abroad.

The Ukrainian government is developing support programmes for affected publishers and printing companies, including grants to restore equipment and compensation for property damage. But the institute said publishers’ losses could not be fully covered by state assistance.

“Against the backdrop of Russia’s ongoing attempts to destroy Ukrainian identity, culture and history, Ukrainian publishing has a special mission,” said Olena Odynoka, deputy director for international cooperation of the Ukrainian Book Institute. “Supporting Ukrainian publishers today is not simply about preserving an industry. It is about defending Ukraine’s right to speak in its own voice and shape its own narrative in the world.”

The institute also called for an end to cooperation with Russian publishers and literary agencies, saying that solidarity with Ukrainian publishers was crucial to preserving cultural heritage that Russia was “deliberately trying to destroy”.