Vydavnytstvo Staryi Lev

Vydavnytstvo Staryi Lev
Name	Vydavnytstvo Staryi Lev
Founded	2001
Founder	Yuri Andrukhovych; Natalia Bilokon; Ostap Vyshnia
Country	Ukraine
Headquarters	Lviv
Publications	Children's literature; Fiction; Non-fiction; Graphic novels
Genre	Children's literature; Young adult; Picture books

Vydavnytstvo Staryi Lev is an independent Ukrainian publishing house based in Lviv that specializes in children's literature, illustrated books, and contemporary fiction; it has become a prominent cultural institution in the context of Ukrainian publishing, literary festivals, and translation networks. The press's program has intersected with European Union cultural initiatives, UNESCO projects, and international book fairs such as the Frankfurt Book Fair, Bologna Children's Book Fair, and Hay Festival, fostering connections with translators, illustrators, and literary agents.

History

Founded in the early 21st century in Lviv, the company emerged amidst post-Soviet literary revival movements and civic activism linked to the Orange Revolution and Euromaidan, interacting with figures and institutions such as Yuri Andrukhovych, Oksana Zabuzhko, Serhiy Zhadan, Ivan Franko National University of Lviv and Lviv National Opera. Its formation drew on networks associated with Lviv Book Forum, Kyiv International Book Arsenal, Ukrainian Institute, Centre for Eastern European Literature, and cultural NGOs that worked with EU Eastern Partnership programs and UNESCO heritage initiatives. Over time the publisher engaged with translation projects involving languages and institutions like German Cultural Institute, British Council, French Institute, Polish Institute, Italian Cultural Institute, Swedish Institute, and collaborations with universities such as Jagiellonian University, University of Cambridge, Sorbonne University, and Columbia University.

Publications and Imprints

The catalogue includes picture books, young adult novels, chapter books, and illustrated non-fiction, with series that reference illustration studios and literary movements connected to Bologna Children's Book Fair, Frankfurt Book Fair, London Book Fair, and national prizes like Taras Shevchenko National Prize and National Bestseller Award. Titles cover Ukrainian folktales and modern adaptations referencing authors and works such as Lesya Ukrainka, Taras Shevchenko, Ivan Franko, Mykhailo Hrushevsky, and translations of international authors associated with Astrid Lindgren, Roald Dahl, Maurice Sendak, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, C.S. Lewis, J.K. Rowling, Neil Gaiman, Philip Pullman, Beatrix Potter, Dr. Seuss, and E.B. White. The imprint has co-published projects with institutions like MAUP, NaUKMA, Lviv Polytechnic, and partnered for educational series with UNICEF, UNDP, and Save the Children.

Notable Authors and Illustrators

The house has published work by contemporary Ukrainian writers and visual artists associated with the modernist and postmodernist traditions, including collaborations and commissions involving creators linked to Oksana Zabuzhko, Lyuba Yakimchuk, Andrey Kurkov, Serhiy Zhadan, Marina Lewycka, Yuri Vynnychuk, Sergiy Osokin, Iryna Vilde, Maryna Hrymych, Pavlo Zahrebelnyi, Oleksandr Irvanets, Vasyl Stus, Viktor Neborak, Natalka Sniadanko, Ihor Pavlyuk, Bohdan Lohvynenko, Halyna Kruk, Kateryna Kalytko, Yulia Shumova, Kostya Moskalets, and illustrators whose styles reference schools represented at the Society of Illustrators, Association of Illustrators, and fairs such as Bologna. International illustrator collaborations connect to names and studios represented by agencies at Art Directors Club, Taschen, and galleries shown at Vienna Biennale and Documenta.

Awards and Recognition

Publications have been shortlisted for and received awards and nominations connected to regional and international honors such as the Shevchenko Prize, BBC Ukrainian Book of the Year, BBC Ukrainian's Book of the Year, European Union Prize for Literature, Bologna Ragazzi Award, Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, ILTER Prize, Hay Festival Medici Prize, and recognition at the Frankfurt Book Fair and Bologna Children's Book Fair. The press has also featured in curated book lists and exhibitions organized by British Council, Polish Book Institute, Goethe-Institut, Institut français, Italian Cultural Institute, Embassy of Sweden, Embassy of Canada, and award juries involving members from Istanbul Literature Festival and Edinburgh International Book Festival.

Distribution and International Reach

Catalogues have been presented at major fairs and markets including Frankfurt Book Fair, Bologna Children's Book Fair, Prague Book Fair, Warsaw Book Fair, London Book Fair, Salon du Livre, Hay Festival, BookWorld Istanbul, Guadalajara International Book Fair, and bilateral book trade missions with ministries and institutes like the Polish Institute, Czech Centres, Slovak Cultural Institute, Austrian Cultural Forum, Embassy of the United States in Kyiv, and Embassy of Canada in Ukraine. Translation rights have been negotiated with agents and publishers across Europe and North America including houses represented at Bonnier, Penguin Random House, Hachette Livre, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Macmillan Publishers, Gruppo Editoriale Mauri Spagnol, Editorial Planeta, and links to bookstores and distribution networks such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Waterstones, Sternberg Press, Indigo Books and Music, and regional distributors active in Central Europe.

Business Structure and Ownership

Operating as an independent private press headquartered in Lviv, the company maintains partnerships and co-publishing agreements with cultural institutions, grant-making bodies, and foundations including International Renaissance Foundation, Open Society Foundations, Prince Claus Fund, European Cultural Foundation, Creative Europe, and philanthropic programs linked to U.S. Embassy in Ukraine Culture Fund and Embassy of Sweden cultural grants. Governance and editorial decisions have been influenced by advisory networks drawing on professionals affiliated with Lviv Book Forum, Kyiv International Short Story Festival, Ukrainian Book Institute, National Library of Ukraine, and academic collaborators from Ivan Franko National University of Lviv and Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv.

Category:Publishing companies of Ukraine