Ivan Bahrianyi dreamed of creating an epic about Ukrainian youth during the Second World War, but managed to write only the first and last parts - the novels "Marusia Bohuslavka" and "The Fiery Circle". Unexpected death did not allow the Genius to complete the design, so we will never know what other great works he could have had.
The novel "Marusia Bohuslavka" depicts the gloomy pre-war Soviet reality, in particular the difficult and dramatic fate of Ukrainian youth during the reign of the communist dictatorship, a reality in which to survive one had to become a conformist, or wear a mask and never show one's true self.
The novel "The Fiery Circle" recreates the tragic story of the "disunited" Ukrainian people, those who faced a deadly battle between the German and russian occupiers. The work is based on the history of the Ukrainian SS division "Halychyna", which the Germans threw into battle near Brody in the summer of 1944, providing themselves with an opportunity to retreat. This novel is a bundle of pain and despair, self-sacrifice and courage, hopes and losses, and unwillingness to surrender.
