Dress-up game

Artem Chekh's "The Dress-Up Game" is a story not only about the war, but also - first of all - about how a Ukrainian soldier experiences himself in the army, how he tries to minimize the army's influence on his civilian, that is, true - at least in pre-war times - structure. And about what he was so afraid of and what he had to repeat. This is a lot of inner pain and a desire to escape to other realities, which seem to be always nearby, but in reality - unattainable. These are not bright stories about heroism and victory. This is about the dark matter of the inner world and the collective tragedy of several generations, which suddenly becomes yours too. An elegy about unnecessary experience that destroys and hurts. A dress-up game in which it is impossible to win, but you can find something worth holding on to.

This book was supported by a fellowship program from the Norwegian Association of Nonfiction Authors and Translators and Ukrainian PEN.