Press releases

22 Apr 2020

Publishing projects to mark Victory Day launched in Belarus

MINSK, 22 April (BelTA) – Belarus’ Information Ministry together with the state-owned publishing houses and the Belarusian book retailer Belkniga have launched the projects to mark the 75th anniversary of the Great Victory, BelTA learned from the Information Ministry.

Under the patronage of the Information Ministry, the Petrus Brovka Belarusian Encyclopedia publishing house has implemented one of the most significant projects in the post-Soviet space - “Belarus Remembers. For the Sake of Life and Peace”. It includes four unique editions: “Belarus partisan movement. An illustrated encyclopedia of the partisan movement in Belarus during the Great Patriotic War”, “No Forgetting. No Understanding. No Justifying. An illustrated encyclopedia of the burned villages of Belarus during the Great Patriotic War”, “The Constellation of Heroes of the Belarusian Land” and “Soviet Holidays and Partisan Parades in Belarus during the Great Patriotic War”. The publications include the previously unknown facts about the Great Patriotic War. The collected materials in many ways shed light on the events, which until now were considered white spots in history.

The series of popular science “Belarus. Tragedy and Truth of Memory” in Belarusian, Russian, English and German has new additions. These are “Khatyn. The Tragedy of the Belarusian People”, “Trostenets. The Tragedy of the Peoples of Europe”, “Pain and Anger. Holocaust and Resistance in Novogrudok”, “Masyukovshchina. The Tragedy of Soviet POWs. “Ozarichi. The Road of Death”, “Osipovichi. Tragic pages of history”. The unique popular science books rely on the serious scientific, source-research, and documentary basis. The documents and illustrative materials contained in these books are published for the first time. They feature rare archive documents.

Among the landmark publications are “The Little Soldiers of the Great War” and “We Cherish the Memory” books published as part of the Belarusian Children's Encyclopedia series.

Projects presenting first-hand accounts include the books by famous authors Nikolai Smirnov (Partisans’ ‘Second Front’ in Belarus: Names, Facts, Operations of the NKVD in the Enemy's Rear; Zvyazda publishing house) and Vyacheslav Bondarenko (The Longest Day; Yakub Kolas polygraphic factory). The novel was first published in 2015, its second edition was expanded and supplemented.

People working in the rear made a great contribution to the victory. The project of the Belarus publishing house “Belarusian Workers to the Front” presents an extensive study of documentary materials related to the evacuation of the population and material assets from the republic, the activity of Belarusian factory workers to switch the economy into a military mode in the eastern regions of the USSR. The role of Belarusian scientists, writers and artists who helped lead the Soviet rear to the Victory is also highlighted.

The Mastatskaya Litaratura publishing house has issued the 19th volume “ Poetry of the Great Patriotic War” as part of “The Golden Collection of Belarusian Literature”.

In the run-up to the Victory Day celebrations, Belkniga book stores across the country will designate central places for these books and highlight them with an impromptu ribbon featuring the symbol of the Belarus Remembers campaign.