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Three years after the political novice Volodymyr Zelensky was elected to Ukraine's highest office, he found himself catapulted into the role of war-time leader. The former comedian has become the public face of his country's courageous and bloody struggle against a brutal invasion.Born to Jewish parents in central Ukraine, Zelensky campaigned for the presidency in the 2019 election on the promise to restore trust in politics. After his landslide victory, he told jubilant supporters 'I will never let you down.' Little did he know that he would be called upon to serve his people in the most demanding circumstances imaginable, fighting for the very survival of his country in the worst war on European soil since 1945.Zelensky's leadership in the face of Russia's aggression is an inspiration to everyone who stands opposed to the appalling violence being unleashed on Ukraine.This book tells his astonishing story.
About the author
Serhii Rudenko is a Ukrainian journalist and political commentator who has published several books on Ukrainian politicians.
Summary
Three years after the political novice Volodymyr Zelensky was elected to Ukraine's highest office, he found himself catapulted into the role of war-time leader. The former comedian has become the public face of his country's courageous and bloody struggle against a brutal invasion.
Born to Jewish parents in central Ukraine, Zelensky campaigned for the presidency in the 2019 election on the promise to restore trust in politics. After his landslide victory, he told jubilant supporters 'I will never let you down.' Little did he know that he would be called upon to serve his people in the most demanding circumstances imaginable, fighting for the very survival of his country in the worst war on European soil since 1945.
Zelensky's leadership in the face of Russia's aggression is an inspiration to everyone who stands opposed to the appalling violence being unleashed on Ukraine.
This book tells his astonishing story.
Report
''War is a rupture--in a country's life and a leader's. Amid the calamity, Ukrainians have proven lucky in theirs. As Mr Rudenko writes at the close, the man who was ''visibly nervous'' in his early bouts of diplomacy, the ingénue and clown, now has an experience of statecraft that no modern Western leader can match, nor would wish to.''The Economist"From voice of Paddington to global giant... the man behind the wartime façade"The Observer"The first English-language biography of Zelensky reveals what Ukrainians really think of him"The Telegraph"Serhii Rudenko's biography is a portrait of a wartime hero whose troubled past may return to haunt him... [It is] an extraordinary life story, which is still being written. Reading this biography now, in the wake of a war that upended our understanding of both Zelensky and Ukraine, presents his personal history in a new light."Lyse Doucet, The New Statesman"Fascinating"The Guardian"A fast-paced biography of an unexpected world leader... the author capably shows how Zelensky has displayed an astonishing transformation in the face of continued Russian aggression."Kirkus"Rudenko has written a succinct political biography that plunges readers right into the middle of the Ukrainian political scene"Prospect Magazine"important and detailed...: Zelensky is easily the equal of the most impressive wartime leaders the West has ever had."Owen Matthews, The Spectator
