War or peace: Sasha Filipenko and Mikhail Sjisjkin in conversation with Eva Hartog

• Date: 01 May 20:30 - 22:00
• Location: Centrale Bibliotheek Podium B

Is Russia in a vicious cycle of dictatorship and revolution, or will the people manage to find a way out of history? - The evening will be interpreted by Seijo Epema. With musical interlude by pianist Rutger Jansen.

Wednesday 1 May 2024 from 20:30 until 22:00

Podium B - Centrale Bibliotheek Den Haag, Spui 68, 5e etage

€12 | Bibliotheekpas, Ooievaarspas €10 | Jongeren t/m 30 jaar €6

'It hurts to be Russian.' So begins dissident Mikhail Shishkin, son of a Ukrainian mother and a Russian father, the book he had to write when war was declared on Ukraine. In "My Russia" (to be released on April 23, 2024), translated from German by Jan Sietsma, he insightfully exposes the roots of Russia's long-standing problems and its relationship with the West. He passionately speculates about 'his Russia', where the portion of the population that stands for democratic values takes the lead.

He emigrated almost 30 years ago; now it seems that language and literature have also been taken away from him. The question is: Is Russia in a vicious cycle of dictatorship and revolution, or will the people manage to find a way out of history?

Sasha Filipenko is also a dissident writer. An outspoken opponent of Lukashenko, he is currently travelling from country to country because of the current political tensions in Belarus. After a life as a public figure -in addition to being a writer, Filipenko was also the face of a satirical television programme- he now lives and writes by necessity in the lee. In his work, the history of his native Belarus is always a theme, and the influence it has on present times.

In his latest novel "Uitgewist" (2024), translated from Russian by Arie van der Ent, he links past and present as a woman looks back on a life-changing decision she made during World War II, trying to save her husband and father of her baby daughter from a certain death in the Gulag.

Sasha Filipenko is a journalist, former TV presenter of a satirical programme in Russia, screenwriter and author of five novels. He is also an outspoken opponent of both Lukashenko and Putin, and in both countries, Belarus and Russia, he is persona non grata. Tirelessly, he travels around Europe explaining and providing background information on the situation in Belarus in particular, which he follows closely. After a time spent moving from one writing residence to another, he now has a residence permit in Switzerland for several years.

Mikhail Shishkin (Moscow, 1961) is one of Russia's most acclaimed contemporary writers and outspokenly anti-Putin. Already in 1995, he left his native country and emigrated to Switzerland. Despite this, he is the only one to have won the three biggest Russian prizes: the Russian Booker Prize for fiction (2000), the National Bestseller Prize (2005) and The Big Book Prize (2011). He has previously published Unfinished Love Letters, Venus Hair and The Calligraphy Lesson at Querido. His work is published in thirty languages and has won international awards.

Eva Hartog is a Dutch journalist who worked in Russia. She was editor-in-chief of the English-language newspaper The Moscow Times. As a correspondent for the Groene Amsterdammer, among others, she lived and worked in Moscow until her visa was not renewed in 2023. Now she is a journalist for Politico, among others.

THE PRESS ABOUT Sasha Filipenko:

'Sasha Filipenko is one of the young authors who has rapidly developed into a writer to be taken seriously. If you want to know how modern, young Belarus thinks, read Filipenko.

- Svetlana Alexievich, winner of the 2015 Nobel Prize in Literature

'First, this book is very sophisticatedly constructed. Second, it tells a chilling story.
- NZZ Am Sonntag

With musical interlude by pianist Rutger Jansen in collaboration with the Royal Conservatory of The Hague.

This Writers Series programme is in English and there will be interpretation from Russian by Seijo Epema.

After the event, there will be a book sale by De Vries Van Stockum, along with an opportunity for book signing.
Programme curated by Ilonka Reintjens (Writers Unlimited)

Writers Series: Sasja Filipenko and Michaïl Sjisjkin in conversation with Eva Hartog
Wednesday May 1st 2024, 20:30-22:00 hr

Centrale Bibliotheek Podium B, Spui 68 2511 BT Den HaagWriters Unlimited organises the Writers Unlimited International Literature Festival The Hague every year in January (January 2025) and monthly Writers Series programmes throughout the year at various locations in The Hague, including the Central Public Library (Centrale Bibliotheek) The Hague. The festival, featuring more than 100 writers, poets, spoken word artists and musicians from the Netherlands and abroad, will take place over four days at venues including Theater aan het Spui, Filmhuis Den Haag, Paard, Koninklijke Schouwburg, neighbourhood libraries, Hague universities and secondary schools.

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