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Start giftingThe Rooster House
Bookseller recommendation
“On its face, The Rooster House is about Author Victoria Belim's return to her childhood home in Ukraine to research her family history. Truly, however, it's about Belim forming an adult bond with her Grandmother Valentina and the people of Ukraine whilst coming to terms with her father's suicide. What initially began as an attempt to solve the mystery of her Uncle Nikodim's disappearance in Ukraine transformed into a deeper understanding of Ukrainian society and the author's place as an expat. As Belim's Ukrainian roots grow stronger, her appreciation for the true plights experienced by her family and the people of her homeland are fully realized. Through Belim's eyes, I was no longer able to see the people of Ukraine as statistics. In light of current events in Ukraine, (or any war-torn country, for that matter) The Rooster House is an essential read to ensure we don't distance ourselves from others' suffering. ”
— Mary • River Bend Bookshop
Summary
A timely and deeply moving story of family, history, and Ukraine
In 2014, the landmarks of Victoria Belim’s personal geography were plunged into tumult at the hands of Russia. Her hometown, Kyiv, was gripped by protests and violence. Crimea, where she’d once been sent to school to avoid radiation from the nuclear disaster at Chernobyl, was invaded. Kharkiv,
where her grandmother Valentina studied economics and fell in love; Donetsk, where her father once worked; and Mariupol, where she and her mother bought a cherry tree for Valentina’s garden, all became battlegrounds.
Victoria, by then an American citizen living in Brussels, felt she had to go back. She had to spend time with her aging grandmother and her cousin Dima. She had to unravel a family mystery spanning several generations. And she needed to understand how a century of her country’s tragic history had
changed the course of their lives.
The Rooster House is a beautifully written memoir of a family, a country’s past, and its dangerous present. It is about parents and children, true believers and victims, gardens and art, secrets and tragedy. Compulsively readable, deeply moving, and at times laugh-out-loud funny, it is a stunning debut
book by an experienced, expressive, and gifted writer.