Artur Dron

Nous étions là

October 7, 2025

Poetry

100 pages

140 × 205 mm

16,90 €

979-1-0949-3646-7

Translated from Ukrainian by Nikol Dziub

Diffusion : CEDIF
Distribution : POLLEN

The poems in the collection Nous étions là were written on the front lines, but they do not speak directly about war. They evoke people who love more than they fear. Who were there—in Ukraine—and who did not leave.

With “ordinary” words, soldiers remember their families; they say goodbye, and they love; they talk about pain and hope.

With “ordinary” words, children write letters to soldiers on the pages of their school notebooks.

This is perhaps the best way for everyone to talk about difficult times.

The author

Artur Dron was born in 2000. He volunteered at the start of the Russian invasion in 2022 and has since served in the 125th Territorial Defense Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Deployed in the Donetsk and then Kharkiv regions, he writes his poems on the front lines.
Several of his texts have been translated around the world. He has chosen to donate all proceeds from this book to the “Voices of Children” foundation, which helps children who are victims of war.

Highlights

Praised by the Ukrainian PEN Club, it is one of the best books of 2023 in Ukraine. Several translations are in preparation.

Like the original, the French edition reproduces handwritten fragments of letters from children, with their drawings and words of encouragement addressed to soldiers. It is a moving contrast that touches all readers from the very first pages.

The author has decided to donate 100% of the profits to a specific cause: the “Voices of Children” foundation, which helps children who are victims of war. This is a book that people buy to give as a gift, to pass on, to support, with a very clear meaning for both the reader and the bookseller.