Living the Independence Dream: Ukraine and Ukrainians in Contemporary Socio-Political Context

“Living the Independence Dream” is an important book in which authors living in Ukraine and outside its borders reflect on how the country has been imagined in the past, what it is now and what it might become in the future. Memory, language, religion, and the current war are important factors in shaping the Ukrainian people’s rapidly evolving collective identity, and each of them receives insightful consideration in this excellent volume.

Marko Pavlyshyn

Emeritus Professor of Ukrainian Studies

Monash University

This compelling collection of articles analyzes what Ukrainian independence has meant for cultural institutions and for the practices of everyday life for individual Ukrainians. Such a vista offers a new lens through which to understand the ramifications of Russia's war against Ukraine. This book is a must-read for anyone interested in contemporary Ukraine.

Catherine Wanner

Professor of History, Anthropology, and Religious Studies

Pennsylvania State University

Author of 'Everyday Religiosity and the Politics of Belonging in Ukraine'

A collective effort of Ukrainian and diasporic scholars, the book “Living the Independence Dream” was conceived as a sum-up, providing an array of illuminating perspectives on Ukraine’s first thirty years of regained independence. The delayed appearance of the book, in the third year of Russia’s genocidal war against Ukraine, its people and statehood, has only enhanced its importance. This is an absolutely essential reading for anyone trying to understand the resilience and inventiveness shown by Ukrainian society as the independence dream is now facing an unprecedented threat.

Susanna Witt

Professor of Slavic Languages, Stockholm University