An insightful and truly heart-breaking read about a young girl from Ukraine. We absolutely do not know what war is and neither should anybody else.

Honest and insightful, however not that well written. It felt like it was published as the first voice available, and it was good to hear, but the strength of writing was fairly low.

A wonderful addition to the library. Pupils will love it. Such a personal account of true events, we are carried along with Yeva and her grandmother and truly start to grasp the reality face by the Ukrainian people. Easy to read and interspersed with snapshots of the lives of Yeva’s friends left behind

Heartbreaking and humbling. I cannot even begin to imagine the horrors, this was well written and honest.

No one can really know what war is until it actually happens to you, and this is at the heart of Yeva's diary. While you don't get any descriptions and insights into the fighting itself, Yeva is only 12 years old, you do get a senses of the fear and anxiety. This is primarily about how Yeva and her Granny manage to escape to safety, first to Hungary, then Ireland. As such it's about the dislocation and trauma of leaving all you know and love, not just the people and places, but the memories they contain, without ever knowing when or if you will return. As a refugee, she experiences the uncertainty and stresses of trying to find somewhere that will take them and allow them to stay and start over. It's certainly a book that gives that child's view of upheaval , alongside accounts at the back of her other friends whose experiences are similar.

Really moving and powerful. It was so interesting to read about the war in Ukraine from a younger person’s perspective. The pictures and images throughout really made it hit home how awful it is.

(I used to work at Bloomsbury so I had requested this when I worked there to read)
This is such an eye-opener book and should be read but everyone. So heartbreaking this is happening right now

Yeva turns twelve just before the war in Ukraine breaks out, living with her adored gran in a comfortable flat in Kharkiv while her divorced parents both work abroad. Based on her notes and memories of how she felt at the time, Yeva gives a vivid picture of the incredulity, fear, insecurity and anxiety that the Russian invasion brought about, all of which contrasts so sharply with her experience of life before, so recognisable to any twelve year old living in Britain. The book covers a short period of time in the days after the war started, detailing their attempts to get to safety, including text messages between Yeva and her friends. This is a very hopeful book: Yeva and her gran are helped along the way by kind and brave people, and through a meeting with TV reporters are eventually resettled, and some of her friends' stories are brought up to date. I discovered a great deal about Ukraine that I would not otherwise have known, and as a member of a generation which has not experienced war in our country I found this an even more powerful evocation of the experience of living in a war zone than the graphic images we see on news reports. A great addition to any school library.

You Don't Know What War Is: The Diary of a Young Girl From Ukraine is an honest account of the war in ukraine from a young girl living through it. A vital, heartbreaking but important read.

Very keen to hear the effect of the conflict from a child’s point of view. Very interesting to see how her friends & their families handled things differently - some fled immediately, some stayed longer than she did. I would like to have known more about her own parents & their thoughts & reactions to being away from her when war broke out.

A war diary that will be a historical record for years to come, like Anne Frank. This is a story that should never need to be told, but due to the atrocities it's so vitally important that it is. Yeva has a wonderful level of maturity and innocence at 12 years old and has written a touching diary full of honesty, humor, wisdom amongst the fear and sadness. Thank you for writing such a meaningful memoir.

I think this book should be read by so many people, maybe then they might have a better understanding of the world. A sad read, but true insight into real life.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

This is the gripping and moving diary of young Ukrainian refugee Yeva Skalietska. It follows twelve days in Ukraine that changed 12-year-old Yeva's life forever. She was woken in the early hours to the terrifying sounds of shelling. Russia had invaded Ukraine, and her beloved Kharkiv home was no longer the safe haven it should have been. It was while she was forced to seek shelter in a damp, cramped basement that Yeva decided to write down her story. And it is a story the world needs to hear.

At the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Yeva Skaliestska began keeping a diary. You Don’t Know What War Is is that diary which details Yeva’s life in Ukraine with her grandmother, leaving their home and, ultimately, their country. An encounter with a Channel 4 news team and an interview about Yeva’s diary meant Yeva and her grandmother were supported as they escaped Ukraine to seek refuge in Ireland.

Throughout the book, Yeva shares text messages from her school group chat, giving us a glimpse at her friends' experiences. They also share their hopes for the future at the end, which is moving.

I read Zlata's Diary by Zlata Filipovic, about the Siege of Sarajevo, published in the mid-90s. I was in primary school, and it is a reading experience that has stayed with me. I hope Yeva’s words have a similar impact on the younger(er) people who read them.

This is the diary of 12-year-old Yeva who is a refugee of the war in Ukraine.

It is blunt, to the point, without hyperbole and is powerful and distressing.

There are transcripts of text messages with friends elsewhere and photographs too.

Yeva told a visiting television crew from the UK about her diary and they were instrumental in arranging for her and her family to escape to Ireland where publication of her story was arranged.

This is a stunning book giving this child's perspective of conflict. We have always been able to imagine what children face in these situations, but this makes it very clear.

Though Yeva writes in simple straightforward text, it is still a difficult read emotionally which it would be good for adults to read alongside the young person.

Ten days after her 12th birthday, Yeva’s life changed forever when the first Russian bombs dropped on her hometown of Kharkiv. She and her grandmother had to flee the flat that they’d lived in for Yeva’s whole life and find safety. So began a journey across Europe to Dublin where they eventually found refuge. Yeva’s diary entries detail that journey on long train rides, sheltering underground with hundreds of others and telling her story to the press. This very moving account of a war that is still very much happening is incredibly emotional and harrowing. Yeva’s perspective as a child is really unique. Her hope and positivity gives the book such an authentic, heartwarming slant. There are some lovely photos and input from her friends that paint a complete picture of what Yeva and so many children like her went through less than a year ago. Most of the time, war memoirs are written years after the action has taken place and depict a life that seems quite alien to most of their readers. Of course, this isn’t the case with this book and it really hammered home to me that something has horrific as what happened to Ukraine last year really can happen to any of us at any time.

What a beautifully written but heartbreaking book about the war in Ukraine. Written by a young girl, this book is breathtakingly honest and will make you cry all the tears.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for the opportunity to read this beautifully told story. Having read it, I still don't know what war is, as I cannot begin to comprehend the loss and devastation that Yeva has gone through at her young age. I kept having to remind myself that I was reading a diary and not a work of fiction. Absolutely heartbreaking to think of others that are still in Ukraine and also in other countries around the world going through war.

This is an incredibly emotional and heartbreaking read. Extremely relevant and honest.
A childs perspective of war was an eye opener for me, covering aspects i hadn't thought of before now.
This really should be added to school reading lists.

Told in diary format, this book gives us insight into a twelve year olds view of the first couple of months of the war in Ukraine. It’s suitable for 11 year olds and up. I was really taken with rawness of emotion as days of displacement in basements or a the road to leave Ukraine were experienced by the author and her friends. It really brings home the impact of the war on 12 year olds. I read this book via @netgalley courtesy of @bloomsburychildrens @KidsBloomsbury