Ukraine’s Lviv BookForum broadcasts to the world this autumn, 2-5 October, with a stellar programme of headline events run in partnership with Hay Festival Global.
Over four days, 13 internationally acclaimed artists gather online for conversations on the theme of resilience and endurance.
Actor, author and Hay Festival president Stephen Fry pairs with journalist Yurko Prokhasko on mental health in war; Nobel Prize for Literature winner Olga Tokarczuk joins fellow writer Sofiia Andrukhovych to explore the new role of literature; novelists Colm Tóibín and Bohdan Kolomiychuk discuss writing historical fiction in historic times; and writers Bernardine Evaristo and Julia Musakovska explore the need to make space for more women writers.
On Thursday 2 October an event at London’s Conduit Club launches the global programme with a trio of acclaimed storytellers – Tanja Maljartschuk, Elif Shafak and Hisham Matar – and Ukrainian Institute London director Olesya Khromeychuk on the role of culture, identity and belonging in understanding history and shaping the future.
In addition, the #ReadForUkraine campaign returns with a host of surprise guests sharing Ukrainian poetry and shorts online from 1 October onwards.
Explore the global programme, register for online streams, and book tickets to the London event now here.
This is the 32nd edition of Lviv BookForum and fourth year of partnership with Hay Festival, aiming to create a civic space for a free and tolerant exchange of ideas between writers and readers around the world.
This global programme of sessions bridges Ukrainian writers and readers with the world, while supplementing a wider in-person programme of activities in Lviv.
In the fourth year of the Russian full-scale invasion, Lviv BookForum continues to take place in person, offering an essential platform for Ukrainians to share their experiences and connect over a shared love of reading.
Lviv BookForum Programme Director Nelly Klos said:
“During this protracted war, Ukrainian society is being tested daily for its endurance – physical, emotional, and moral. In these circumstances, books remain a space where one can find support, meaning, silence, and dialogue. They help us not to lose ourselves, to maintain a connection with the past, and to shape the future. We greatly appreciate our long-standing and mutually enjoyable collaboration with Hay Festival Global. We thank you for the opportunity for Ukrainian voices to be heard worldwide.”
Hay Festival CEO Julie Finch said:
“As an international charity, we reach millions of people every year through our one-of-a-kind Festivals, Forums, programmes, and digital platforms. Our partnership with Lviv BookForum remains a flagship moment in our global calender – an act of cultural solidarity and a stand for free expression. By amplifying Ukrainian storytellers on an international stage, we can champion their writing while building important connections across borders. Join us.”
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, three hybrid editions of Lviv BookForum have taken place in partnership with Hay Festival, featuring guests including Nobel Prize for Literature winner Abdulrazak Gurnah; Booker Prize winner Margaret Atwood; anthropologist Yuval Noah Harari; authors Victoria Amelina (killed by a Russian missile), Samar Yazbek, Jonathan Littell and Liuba Tsybulska; lawyers and activists Larysa Denysenko and Philippe Sands; poets Kateryna Kalytko and Ostap Slyvynsky; philosopher Volodymyr Yermolenko; and many more.
Hay Festival, one of the world’s leading cultural charities, was founded in Hay-on-Wye, Wales in 1987, providing audiences with dynamic platforms to come together to share ideas, different perspectives and provoke conversations that can create a better world.
The continued partnership is the latest chapter of the Festival’s global projects, forging creative connections around the world with year-round events and partnerships.
Find out more here.
