Inna Danyliuk is a Ukrainian writer who has been living in Gozo since April 2022 and this summer she has just had published a delightful book for children, in fact the first children’s book about Gozo that has been published in Ukraine – The Magical Dragons of Gozo.

The book has been translated into English and Maltese and waiting publication in Malta. However, for anyone that would like to hear an extract from the Magical Dragons of Gozo, Inna will be present at event in San Lawrenz this evening .

“The Magical Dragons of Gozo” is a story about friendship between Ukrainian girl Yulia and Gozitan boy Julian.The author said that the book is dedicated to Gozitans Claude Calleja and John Bartolo and to all people who helped her to escape from the war in Ukraine and sheltered her and her family in Gozo.

Inna is 37-years of age and has a 5-year son. She is Laureate of the O.Honchar International Ukrainian-German Prize (2008, for the collection of short stories for adults).

She has written two books, “The Magical Dragons of Gozo” (for children 5+) and “To dive into the Kyiv Sea” (suitable 9-12 years of age), Old Lion Publishing House, Ukraine).

Inna is currently working as a free-lance literary editor for The Old Lion Publishing House and as a book reviewer for the BaraBooka website – website about Ukrainian modern children’s and teenagers literature.

The Magical Dragons of Gozo is suitable for children (5+). The story is about Yulia and her mother came to Malta fleeing the war in Ukraine. The girl soon made friends with a local boy, Julian, as they both like animals and want to become animal advocates in the future.

While Yulia’s parents support their daughter fully, it is not so simple for Julian since his father is a fisherman and his mother is a cook in a fish restaurant: they do not accept the boy’s ideas about rescuing the wild inhabitants of the Mediterranean.

The children don’t want to wait until they grow up: you have to act now! Especially since there are so many wonderful creatures needing protection around. Moreover, the adventurous couple have magical Dragons to help them in this! Another character of the story is a traditional fishing boat called luzzu.

The book is published in The Black Sheep publishing house which specialises in children’s literature and art books and cooperates with many writes from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark, USA, Great Britain, Poland and Ukraine. Illustrations for the book were created by Ukrainian illustrator Anna Vilchynska

Top photo: Inna Danyliuk and below an illustration from the book by Ukrainian artist Anna Vilchynska

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