Baba Dunja is a Chernobyl returnee. Together with a motley bunch of former neighbours, they set off to create a new life for themselves in the radioactive no-man's land. Geiger counter and irradiated forest fruits be damned, there in that abandoned patch of Earth they have everything they need. Terminally ill Petrov passes the time reading love poems; Marja takes up with 100-year-old Sidorow; Baba Dunja writes letters to her daughter. Rural bliss reigns, until one day a stranger turns up, and the small settlement faces annihilation once again.

Baba Dunja has decided to move back to her hometown Tschernowo in the Ukraine, in the "death zone" after the reactor incident in 1986.
Never mind the radiation or the misshapen fruit and veg, she and her group of equally old neighbours just wanted a quiet life but the one day a stranger and a little girl appear in the village..
It's a beautiful little novel, funny and moving and just a joy to read.

On its way to Nu-Knees
Hope you enjoy this little gem

Thank you very much, kinedi, for the lovely package of books and Christmas Greetings the postman brought me. Your card was one of the first to arrive and is already on display. I would say that they're up for all to see but I'm not expecting anyone who doesn't live here to enter the house until the Spring, long after the Christmas decorations will have been taken down again! In the meantime, OldKnees and I are enjoying the colour and light we've surrounded ourselves with!

I'm not sure what to expect of this story but I'm sure I'll soon find out. It looks delightful, thank you :-)

Well, I was right about soon knowing what I thought of it! It didn't wait long before I started it - and it didn't last long once I had! What a lovely tale, one that drew me in and kept me reading from start to finish. Ideal for a lazy Saturday! I loved Baba Dunja's way of looking at the world. Thank you again, kinedi :-)

To tree-hugger, with all sorts of Happy Christmas Greetings!