September 01, 2024

Russians Take New York


Russians Take New York
Don't worry, not that New York. The Russian Life files.

In late August, Russian state media reported that Kremlin forces had taken the village of New York, Ukraine. This is Russia's latest victory in its ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

Izvestia noted that the village holds strategic significance: according to that outlet, New York was used as an artillery base by Ukrainian troops. However, it's hard to also miss the significance of Russia taking a town bearing the same name as one of the U.S.'s largest cities.

It's unclear why the unremarkable Ukrainian village bears that name. It was settled by German Protestants in the nineteenth century and christened "New York" then (although spelled in Cyrillic: Нью-Йорк). In 1951, the name was changed to much more Slavic-sounding Novgorodskoye.

The name was reverted in 2021, a move we marked by sharing a meme. But whether these Russian gains will be significant as Ukraine pushes into Russian territory is yet to be seen.

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The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.

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