Valchen

Cloudless Crimean summer. Thirteen-year-old Valia has summer vacation ahead: swimming, reading, conversations with her best friend. And then—a seventh grade and four years of excellent studies to fulfill her dream of entering medical school. And then—a whole life.
But on June 22, 1941, war broke out, and each day brought changes. A few months later, the girl would be sent along with hundreds of others to Germany, where she would be marked with the sign "OST," like a brand: "Ostarbeiter"—not a human, but cheap labor. Hard work, injustice, deprivations—and growing up, meeting amazing people who call her in German: Valchen. First love. And again—a whole life.
Through the lives of Valia and her older friend Natasha, through the smallest historical details, a picture of the era is created. As in the author's first book—"Sugar Baby"—the basis of "Valchen" are the true stories of many people. This book also has no black and white, no unequivocal assessments—yet it has a gripping plot and many questions that the characters seek answers to. And an invitation to dialogue—with friends, at school, in the library, to dialogue with History.
"Valchen" is a novel by Olga Gromova, the author of one of the main children's books of the 21st century—"Sugar Baby," which has already gone through thirteen editions and has been translated into a dozen languages, from French to Thai.
The new novel has entered the list of outstanding children's books in the world "White Ravens - 2022," compiled by the Munich International Children's Library.