Russian attacks strike Kyiv bookstore again for second time in six weeks and damage Lviv library

Overnight Russian attacks on Kyiv and Lviv on July 30 damaged the family-run Alpaca bookstore near Kyiv’s Pochaina metro station and Library Branch No. 32 in Lviv. The Kyiv bookstore was damaged for the second time in six weeks. In the Lviv library’s reading room, every window was shattered.

Alpaca bookstore damaged again

The blast wave damaged the facade of the Alpaca bookstore and shattered its windows. Because glass and damaged window structures from the building’s upper floors remained at risk of falling, employees could not safely enter the premises, and the bookstore remained closed on July 30.

“It feels as though your soul has been torn apart,” the bookstore’s team wrote on social media, sharing footage of the destruction.

This was the second Russian attack to damage the building in six weeks. During an overnight strike on June 15, the blast wave shattered windows, deformed their frames, and caused part of the ceiling to collapse. Repairs following that attack had not yet been completed when the bookstore was damaged again.

Dmytro Ushchenko, director of the Alpaca bookstore chain, told Chytomo that the bookstore had not yet resolved the damage caused by the June strike. He estimated that repairing the facade after the latest attack would cost around 200,000 hryvnias — a significant sum for the business.

According to Ushchenko, the bookstore will most likely operate with oriented strand board panels covering its windows until the end of September. He said neither the bookstore nor the property owner had received state compensation and that the team was addressing the damage directly with the landlord.

Alpaca is a family-run Kyiv bookstore specializing in children’s, educational, and fiction titles. It works with Ukrainian publishers, among them the Ranok publishing corporation, and develops its own social initiatives.

Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion, the bookstore has collected Russian-language books for recycling. Visitors may bring books to the store or send them by mail and receive certificates or discount codes for Ukrainian books in return. The team directs proceeds from recycling the paper toward supporting the Ukrainian military. Individual readers and Ukrainian companies have joined the ongoing initiative.

Ushchenko is a military veteran who has actively supported Ukrainian service members and volunteer initiatives since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. The Alpaca team is currently assessing the damage and hopes to reopen the bookstore.

Every window shattered in Lviv library’s reading room

The overnight Russian attack on Lviv also damaged Library Branch No. 32 on Vyhovskoho Street, according to Andrii Zakaliuk, director of the Lviv City Council’s Department of Education and Culture.

Preliminary assessments found that 10 windows and two sets of doors had been damaged in the building. The reading room was hit particularly hard: all of its windows were shattered and could not be repaired.

Library representatives told Chytomo that no books were damaged and all employees were safe. A neighboring building was also damaged, while a commission was working at the site and inspecting the library.

The attack damaged educational institutions in Lviv as well. At Lyceum No. 15, 180 windows were shattered, while four sets of doors and the roof were damaged. At Kindergarten No. 139, 39 windows and four sets of doors were damaged, although the institution continued operating with duty groups.

As reported earlier, Russian attacks have repeatedly damaged Ukraine’s publishing infrastructure. An overnight missile-and-drone attack on Kyiv on July 18–19 destroyed a warehouse belonging to the Ukrainian publishing house #knygolove, devastated the Konvi printing facility, destroyed the office of the newly established Mison publishing house, and damaged the Arc.ua office. In July alone, Russia has devastated more that 1.5 million Ukrainian books.