True stories
2020
Chronicles of one hungerstrike. 4 and a half steps
by Oleh Sentsov
“Chronicles of one hunger strike” is a diary of Oleh Sentsov, the Kremlin prisoner, who had been keeping it since May 2018, the third day after he announced indefinite hunger strike with the demand to free Ukrainian political prisoners. Day by day, throughout 145 days, despite moral pressure and physical exhaustion, Oleh had been frankly and honestly writing in his notebook in small, illegible letters, extremely accurately recording his everyday life in Russian prison, his observations and thoughts. After his release the author miraculously managed to take his notes out of Russia. “4 and a half steps” is a collection of small prose by Oleh Sentsov, written in a Russian prison. What does a man feel, having gotten to prison for the first time? How do prisoners live in tight and dirty cells, behind thick walls and muddy windows with double grid? What rules and laws one should obey, having gotten there? The author tells as objectively and critically as he can about prisoners’ life and circumstances that led them to captivity—he does not justify, nor criticise, but only witnesses. Striking, sometimes horrifying facts with verified accurate details create a convincing background, where events of numerous lives unfold. The author usually does not make any conclusions—he leaves this right to the reader.
