Ukrainian women’s voices brought to the heart of Paris
At the end of May and beginning of June 2026, Ukrainian writer Yuliia Iliukha participated in two major literary events in Paris at the invitation of the Austrian Cultural Forum Paris. She appeared at La Nuit de la littérature and took part in the panel discussion "Voix de femmes, voix d’Ukraine: créer, résister, exister en temps de guerre" at INALCO.
On 30 May, during La Nuit de la littérature, Yuliia Iliukha presented the French edition of her award-winning book “Mes femmes” (“My Women”), published by Éditions des femmes in 2025. The discussion with the author was led by translator Iryna Dmytrychyn, followed by readings from the book in French, Ukrainian and German. Readers also had the opportunity to meet the author during a book signing session.
Through a collection of powerful short stories, “My Women” portrays the everyday lives of anonymous Ukrainian women living through war, loss, fear and resilience. The event offered French audiences a deeply personal perspective on the realities of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
On 1 June, Yuliia Iliukha joined Ukrainian photographer Daria Svertilova for a panel discussion at INALCO exploring how literature and photography document women’s experiences of war and preserve human stories in times of conflict. The discussion concluded with a reading from the book by a French actress.
The events were organised in cooperation with the Austrian Cultural Forum Paris, the Ukrainian Institute in France, INALCO and FICEP. Together, they welcomed more than 120 participants and created an important platform for dialogue on contemporary Ukrainian literature, women’s experiences during wartime and international cultural cooperation.