Myroslav Laiuk shortlisted for the Ryszard Kapuściński Award

“Bakhmut” by Ukrainian writer Myroslav Laiuk has been shortlisted for the Ryszard Kapuściński Award by the Polish Press Agency (PAP), which is presented for the best book of reportage.

Featuring photographs by Danylo Popov, “Bakhmut” was released by the Polish publishing house Ha!art in a translation by Maciej Piotrowski. In Ukraine, the book was published by Ukraїner.

“A collection of reports and essays about life during the war, focusing on the fiercest battles for Bakhmut in the winter and March of 2023. The authors spend days and nights with Ukrainian infantrymen and artillerymen, medics and chaplains, rescuers and children in the city and its surroundings, where artillery shelling and street fighting continue,” the annotation to the book reads. 

The shortlist included: 

• “Poznań kolonialny. Rodzinna historia z Tanzanią w tle” by Kasper Bajon
• “Nie koniec, nie początek. Powojenne wybory polskich Żydów” by Anna Bikont
• “Nasz mały sekret” (translated by Wojciech Jędrak) by Emily Carrington
• “Ciszę nad stepem. Kazachstan i pamięć o Rosji” by Joanna Czeczott
• “Głowa węża. Przemytnicy z Chinatown i amerykański sen” (translated by Jan Dzierzgowski) by Patrick Radden Keefe
• “Ciao, amore, ciao. Morderstwo w Rzymie” (translated by Tomasz Kwiecień) by Nicola Lagioia
• “Bakhmut” (translated by Maciej Piotrowski) by Myroslav Laiuk
• “Propagandysta, który przechytrzył Hitlera. Jak wygrać wojnę informacyjną” (translated by Aleksandra Paszkowska) by Peter Pomerantsev
• “Aglo. Banką po Śląsku” by Zbigniew Rokita
• “Przepraszam za brzydkie pismo. Pamiętniki wiejskich kobiet” by Antonina Tosiek

The winner’s name will be announced on May 30, 2026, at the Warsaw Book Fair.

The Ryszard Kapuściński Award is a major annual Polish international literary prize, the most important distinction in the genre of literary reportage. 

The award was established to recognize and promote the most valuable reportage books that address significant contemporary issues, inspire reflection, and broaden understanding of other cultures, and therefore also of oneself, and is intended to honour the legacy of the journalist and writer Ryszard Kapuściński.

Ryszard Kapuściński was a Polish reporter, publicist, poet, and photographer. Kapuściński’s reportages gained international recognition not only as journalism but also as literature. He became the most translated Polish author after Stanisław Lem. Kapuściński was nominated for the Nobel Prize several times.

In 2020, a book by Ukrainian writer Artem Chekh was shortlisted for the Kapuściński Award.

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Copy editing: Joy Tataryn