«For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest». Review of: Ihor Yakubovskyy “Holodomor 1932–1933: Reflection in the Regional Press of Kyiv and Chernihiv Regions 1932–1933.” Lviv: Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, 2025. 496 p.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.17721/1728-2640.2025.161.10

Abstract

Abstract. The scientific study of the Holodomor-genocide of the Ukrainian people in 1932-1933 is one of the most complex scientific problems not only in domestic, but also in world historical science. This complexity is due, first of all, to the limited source base necessary for a comprehensive and professional study of the topic. Documentary sources were and are being destroyed by Russia, as the initiator and perpetrator of the genocide, witnesses, over time, disappear into eternity, material sources disappear, etc. In view of the above-described difficulties, the introduction into scientific circulation of any new corpus of sources on the history of the Holodomor-genocide arouses keen interest in the scientific community.

The peer-reviewed monograph by Igor Yakubovsky was written based on the Soviet regional press, which was used as a source for the study of the Holodomor. The author managed to process a large array of district-level press of Kyiv and Chernihiv regions (within the limits as of the beginning of the 1930s) and, from completely open materials, to isolate and analyze information about the tragedy of the extermination of the Ukrainian people by famine, which, despite all censorship measures, leaked into the columns of the official Soviet press. The researcher has done significant heuristic and analytical work that deserves the attention of an interested circle of readers.

Keywords: Holodomor-genocide, local press, peasants, information potential, behavioral strategies, authorized persons, "blackboards".