A Brief History of a Long War, is a lively read, full of important historical vignettes both ancient and modern which help to tell the reader more about Ukraine, a proud nation, and its long struggle to free itself from an oppressive Russian yoke.

The authors tell the story in graphic novel format, from the perspective of modern Ukrainians under Russian air attack in Kyiv. While they huddle in one of the shelters, different speakers fill the reader in on various periods in Ukrainian history going back to the earliest days and well into the modern. This reads like a history lesson taught by the community huddled behind thick concrete in mostly black, white, and gray with splashes of orange throughout, which was the color associated with the 2004 events following election irregularities and alleged widespread corruption. (50-51) Within the bomb shelter’s claustrophobia, the story plays out as a stark reminder of often forgotten history that bears repeating.

Among the stories told in the bunker, are those about genocide, the Kyivan Rus, and the Cossacks which all serve to link the Ukrainian past to present and give better context for why things are this way today, especially for most readers who may know little to nothing about the history of the region.

First, the authors tackle the issue of genocide in Ukrainian history which begins with the desire to change what was a largely agricultural society into an industrial one due to far away Moscow’s desires for modernization. The Ukrainian peasantry had little interest in either communism or industrialization, which meant they would have to be forced into it, lest the Five-Year Plan of 1928 fail. This would also require collectivization, which would deny land to individual farmers in the name of the larger societal collective, which was particularly anathema to the Ukrainians, who rightly were among the most productive agricultural workers of the Soviet Union. Resistance meant punishment, like mass deportations, and Ukraine would suffer perhaps more than anywhere else having to export its grain to feed others. The Holodomor was the result, which cost millions of Ukrainian lives in an engineered famine meant to silence dissent. (pp. 10-24)

Second, the tale of the Kyivan / Kievan Rus, essentially the founders of modern Ukraine, is discussed and Prince Volodymyr, among others, is critical to the story for his leadership, presiding over a dominion from the Black Sea to Lake Ladoga which lasted until the Mongols invaded in 1240. It must be made clear, however, that the Russians, then and now, deny that the Ukrainians are anything other than Russians, thereby saying they are not distinct from them. This has been popular Soviet propaganda for a long time, and it continues today in varying ways, belittling Ukraine as a separate entity with its own folklore, traditions and language, etc. The Kievan Rus story is an example of this attempted “russification” that continues even today. Kiev / Kyiv is a key city that remains a vibrant, although embattled, capital now in 2026. The fact that the West tends to use the Russian spelling for Ukrainian city names is an example of russification. In school we heard it called “Kiev,” not “Kyiv” and so forth which unwittingly taught that the Russian version mattered. (pp. 25-32)

Lastly, the story of the Cossacks is highlighted as uniquely Ukrainian. Sword-wielding horsemen who governed themselves on the steppes, typically Christians and often viewed as rebels to those who tried to tame them, it is understandable they are often held up as heroes today in Ukraine. The Cossacks built settlements, known as a “Sich” along the Dnipro River (Russian: Dnieper) which served not only military but also economic and political purposes, like the Zaporizhian Sich. They elected their own military leaders (“Hetman”) and had a council system (“Rada”) where all Cossacks could vote which was very different than many of their oppressed contemporaries. Ukraine has no shortage of famous Cossacks, like Hetman Pylyp Orlyk, who is credited with writing the first Ukrainian constitution. Eventually Russian Empress Catherine the Great eliminated much of the old ways, but Cossacks continued to exist. (pp. 40-45)

Mariam Naiem, Yulia Vus and Ivan Kypibida’s A Brief History of a Long War fills an important gap in the existing literature about the Russian “special military operation” which has recently entered its fifth year, providing succinct yet thoughtful anecdotes about Ukraine’s past in a compelling way that rises above a mere graphic treatment to literature. Using minimalist, yet detailed tones it crafts a story as old as time, of oppression and struggle, which is nothing new. Russia had dominated Ukraine for a very long time, before a brief interlude and again the proverbial wolf is at the door. This brief, yet thoughtfully nuanced book belongs on every shelf of those interested in the backstory of the conflict but also those who appreciate an underdog story.

---///---

Our Reviewer: Professor Schultz (Luzerne CC) has taught history and political science to community college undergraduates for over 20 years. Specializing in military history, particularly World War II and the Cold War-era, he has presented papers at the McMullen Naval History Symposium, the Society for Military History Annual Meetings, the Midwestern History Conference, and other venues. He contributed Chapter 12 “The Reich Strikes Back: German Victory in the Dodecanese, October-November 1943” to On Contested Shores: The Evolving Role of Amphibious Operations in the History of Warfare, edited by Timothy Heck and B.A. Friedman (2020). His previous reviews for us include Warrior Spirit: The Story of Native American Patriotism and Heroism, Home Run: Allied Escape and Evasion in World War II, The Spanish Blue Division on the Eastern Front, 1941-1945, The ‘Blue Squadrons’: The Spanish in the Luftwaffe, Malta’s Savior: Operation Pedestal, Flawed Commanders and Strategy in the Battles for Italy, Lawrence of Arabia on War, Dogwood: A National Guard Unit's War in Iraq, German Breakthrough in Greece: The 1941 Battle of the Pineios Gorge, The Armed Forces of North Korea, Volume 1 - Korean People's Army Ground Forces Organisation, Strategy and Infantry, Storm Proofing: Preparing Armies for a Future War, and Leros and the Aegean.

---///---

Note: A Brief History of a Long War is also available in an e-edition

StrategyPage reviews are published in cooperation with The New York Military Affairs Symposium

www.nymas.org