The writer who debunked a cinematic myth about Odessa has become a member of PEN Ukraine

Valery Puzik has become a new member of Ukrainian PEN—a writer, artist, military servicemember, member of the "Cultural Forces" platform, and author of a piece debunking a cinematic myth about Odesa, which Russians reported to YouTube. 

This was reported by PEN Ukraine. 

 In January 2026,Valery Puzikwas awarded the Bohdan Khmelnytsky Prize for the best portrayal of military themes in literature and art in 2025 in the category "Literary Works on Military Themes" for his book *With Love—Dad!*.

In September 2025, YouTube blocked a video podcast by writerValery Puzik, inwhich he recounts how, during the Soviet era, cinema was used to construct the myth of gangster-ridden Odesa. One of the reasons cited for the block was a complaint from the rights holders regarding the use of footage from the TV series “Liquidation.” In the podcast,Valery Puzikfocused on this film project because it was created within Soviet narratives to portray Odessa as an exclusively Russian city.

The Ukrainian Center of International PEN (PEN<i>Ukraine</i>, from the English word “pen,” an abbreviation for Poets, Playwrights, Essayists, and Novelists”) was founded in the fall of 1989. The main criterion for joining PEN is not the number of books published, nor even recommendations from colleagues, but a statement in which the prospective member pledges to adhere to the principles listed in the PEN Charter. By joining PEN, its members commit to doing everything possible to promote literature and oppose any form of suppression of freedom of speech and expression in Ukraine and around the world. 

In 2025, members of PEN Ukraine compiled a list of publications that had impressed them over the course of the year; the list included 252 books, among which wasValerii Puzik’s*Who We Were*. 

A year earlier, PEN Ukraine had traditionally compileda listof publications that had impressed the club’s members over the course of the year; the list included 201 books, among them works by another Odesa writer—the poetAndriy Khaetskyi.

Кирило Бойко