10th March, 2025 in Recommended Reads

Two Souls by Maksim Haretski and translated by Olya Ianovskaia

“The harmony of the earlier, predominantly national peculiarities of the movement with the current social peculiarities filled Mikola’s heart with the unusual joy, for he was fully convinced that only on the social and national party would the Belarusian revival be certain and capable of swiftly encompassing the vast masses of Belarusian peasantry.” “The social aspect of the revival would capture the most worthwhile, valuable and cultured parts of the remaining Belarusian bourgeoisie.” The novel, Two Souls, by Maksim Haretski and translated by Olya Ianovskaia, delivers an encapsulating insight into the effect of the Bolshevik revolution, beyond Russian society, to those of surrounding countries, specifically Belarus. Two Souls, through the views of multiple characters, skillfully centers on the observations and considerations of its principal character, Ignat Abdiziralovich, as he attempts to find his place amongst the social upheaval affecting Belarusian identity and his stance on these diverging reforms.