When the Factor Druk printing press in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv was hit by a Russian missile on May 23, it struck at the very heart of the embattled country’s literary culture. Seven employees were killed, 21 were injured, and 50,000 books were destroyed in the attack on the printing facility, the largest in Ukraine and one of the biggest in Europe. For Louisa Cameron, owner of Raven Books in Blackrock, Co Dublin, the news was particularly devastating, as she had visited Ukraine just weeks before to facilitate the delivery of a consignment of books and also meet with representatives of PEN Ukraine, which represents writers and publishers in the country.
Cameron says she felt she had to do something to support libraries in the country after speaking to some of her Ukrainian customers. “Through them, I got in touch with a few librarians in Ukraine to figure out what they needed and wanted. I brought 30 boxes of books for children, from tots to teens, for distribution to libraries in need.
” The books were sent on ahead and Cameron flew to Poland, crossing from there to Ukraine, with the help of Mariusz, who she describes as an “absolute hero”. “He took delivery of the books and about a week later picked me up at Krakow Airport and drove me across the border. His grandmother was Ukrainian so he has been back and forth delivering supplies.
"We stopped in a little village there first of all, they had a lovely library as part of a cultural centre. I met the libraria.