In Lviv, a book by renowned Ukrainian writer Myroslav Dochynets, “The Cricket Shepherd”, has been adapted for blind children. The edition was prepared by the Lviv regional branch of the All-Ukrainian NGO “Ukrainian Union of People with Disabilities — USI”, as reported by the project coordinator, Lviv resident Oksana Potymko.
The book is printed in Braille and features raised, coloured illustrations that children can “look at” by touch. Each picture is accompanied by a textual description to help readers with total sight loss imagine the colours and details of what is depicted. The edition has a sturdy, colourful hard cover designed for long-term use — approximately 15–20 years.
A single copy contains all three parts of the work. This is because the raised dot script is much bulkier than standard print and cannot be reduced in size, so for readers’ convenience all parts have been combined into one book.
In the near future, “The Cricket Shepherd” will be sent to various cities across Ukraine where blind children live or study. These include Lviv, Kharkiv, Kyiv, Sloviansk, Svitlovodsk, Klevan, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, Vinnytsia and other localities.
“A fine Ukrainian book with wonderful content and exquisite design must be accessible to children with total sight loss. And we are very happy that this is the case!” — Oksana Potymko
For many years now, Oksana Potymko has been initiating and coordinating various programmes in Ukraine for people with visual impairments. It is her team in Lviv that has been systematically working to make contemporary literature accessible to blind readers.
The project “Historical Memory of Ukraine and the European Context. A Literary Dimension”, within which this book was published, is being implemented by the Lviv regional branch of the All-Ukrainian NGO “Ukrainian Union of People with Disabilities — USI”. This year, the organisation won a Ukrainian Cultural Foundation competition in the literary category: the initiative took third place among more than 70 submitted projects.
According to Oksana Potymko, the team has set itself an ambitious goal: to print 1,000 copies of five new literary editions by Ukrainian and European authors that highlight the importance of historical memory for the shared future of Ukraine and Europe. In addition, they plan to record five new audiobooks, including creating inclusive dramatised audiobooks featuring blind children and well-known Ukrainian actors.
The organisation has only five months to bring the entire plan to life. The project team is made up entirely of blind people and, as Oksana Potymko stresses, this is a deliberate decision by the Lviv branch, intended to break down stereotypes and prejudices about the role of people with disabilities in contemporary society.
During russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, a record number of children’s books — more than 5,000 — have been printed in Braille and recorded as audiobooks in Lviv, and this work continues. Specialists in Lviv have also organised a series of unique camps for blind children from all over the country.
At the same time, the city is making services more accessible: administrative service centres have been adapted for people with hearing and visual impairments, and a special version of the city website for blind users has been launched. In addition, Lviv provides annual municipal payments to people with visual impairments, offering them financial support.