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Heart Stones: A Ukrainian Immigration Story of Love and Hope
In 1914, a young Ukrainian family faces an uncertain future. With growing political unrest in the region, they are forced to make a difficult decision between remaining in their beloved homeland or reaching for a better life across the cold Atlantic. In the end, Myk makes the hardest choice of his life and leaves his wife and two young children, with hopes of quickly saving enough money to send for them.
Things don’t go as planned: WWI breaks out shortly after his departure, leaving his family at the mercy of enemy forces, whose violence and cruelty drive his wife, Lilia, and their children out of their home village. Meanwhile, in Canada, Myk finds himself at the mercy of the authorities, who no longer look upon him as a welcomed immigrant worker but as a potential threat to national security. He is left without a means of contacting his loved ones, as he struggles to survive countless obstacles to achieving his family's dream of reuniting one day.
A story of love, enduring patience, and faith, Heart Stones – A Ukrainian Immigration Story of Love and Hope is based on the real experiences of the author’s grandparents and paints a poignant and compelling picture that touches on the many historical events of the time with which many people today are sadly and blissfully unaware. This incredibly important story will
change that . . . and its readers.
Things don’t go as planned: WWI breaks out shortly after his departure, leaving his family at the mercy of enemy forces, whose violence and cruelty drive his wife, Lilia, and their children out of their home village. Meanwhile, in Canada, Myk finds himself at the mercy of the authorities, who no longer look upon him as a welcomed immigrant worker but as a potential threat to national security. He is left without a means of contacting his loved ones, as he struggles to survive countless obstacles to achieving his family's dream of reuniting one day.
A story of love, enduring patience, and faith, Heart Stones – A Ukrainian Immigration Story of Love and Hope is based on the real experiences of the author’s grandparents and paints a poignant and compelling picture that touches on the many historical events of the time with which many people today are sadly and blissfully unaware. This incredibly important story will
change that . . . and its readers.
324 pages, Paperback
Published February 21, 2023
1 person is currently reading
25 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
January 17, 2023
This historical fiction based off a real life story of tragedy, love, hope, and determination brought me to tears many times throughout this book. My heart broke with Lila and Myk as he left for Canada in search of a better life for his family, 3 year old son, weeks old daughter, wife and mother. It broke again when the war started and cut contact between the two. When friends and loved ones were separated and when things could have gotten so much worse I held my breath and was able to breathe when they didn’t.
Many times when reading historical fiction books everything comes out rosy in the end. We know the reality doesn’t always have such a clean and happy ending. While this is the authors families story, I’m thankful that we weren’t painted a perfect picture of a happy ending of everyone being reunited.
In the end there are still questions about the fates of those that we never are able to know.
I highly recommend reading this story. It will make you cry but sometimes in the best way.
Many times when reading historical fiction books everything comes out rosy in the end. We know the reality doesn’t always have such a clean and happy ending. While this is the authors families story, I’m thankful that we weren’t painted a perfect picture of a happy ending of everyone being reunited.
In the end there are still questions about the fates of those that we never are able to know.
I highly recommend reading this story. It will make you cry but sometimes in the best way.
January 15, 2023
This book is really timely. With the ongoing war in the Ukraine and the pictures we see on the nightly news, this book come alive. The descriptions of the Ukraine of more than a century ago when the territory was also a battleground feel so real. The hardships endured by Lilia left behind in the Ukraine with two small children while her husband immigrates to Canada in order to build them a better life. Amazing what people can survive and then go on to prosper. Although I grew up in western Canada I knew nothing of Ukrainian internment camps during WW1, life in camps building the railroad, and internment camps in Europe during WW1. They are all so well described you feel like you are there. Wonderful to read historical fiction, learn, and be fortunate to be living with only first world problems myself.
January 9, 2023
Fictional literature about the Canadian Ukrainian immigration experience are few and far between. So, it is a pleasant experience to read a story of Ukrainian migrants and refugees during the WW1 period richly told by a novelist writer, with nuance, and without relying on trite stereotypes.
The book’s title Heart Stones derives from a heart-shaped amulet that binds the story protagonists so to protect the young husband wearer during his immigration tribulations.
The novel has it all—social & economic factors, history, politics, emotions that lead to the mass immigration from Eastern Galacia, all packaged into a highly readable account of a Ukrainian family whose dream of farming in the Western Canadian provinces is derailed by WW1.
The author tells a forgotten story about the fate of a migrant family torn apart when they opt to have the family breadwinner leave first to make a home before the rest of the young family join him. The thing that haunts me is the author’s care for the stories of the dead, her refusal to let those humans be forgotten. It is a quintessential Ukrainian migrant story, which makes it a truly Canadian story.
The book’s title Heart Stones derives from a heart-shaped amulet that binds the story protagonists so to protect the young husband wearer during his immigration tribulations.
The novel has it all—social & economic factors, history, politics, emotions that lead to the mass immigration from Eastern Galacia, all packaged into a highly readable account of a Ukrainian family whose dream of farming in the Western Canadian provinces is derailed by WW1.
The author tells a forgotten story about the fate of a migrant family torn apart when they opt to have the family breadwinner leave first to make a home before the rest of the young family join him. The thing that haunts me is the author’s care for the stories of the dead, her refusal to let those humans be forgotten. It is a quintessential Ukrainian migrant story, which makes it a truly Canadian story.
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February 8, 2023Heart Stones is a history lesson of Ukraine during the First World War and a shocking exposure of Canada’s treatment of Ukrainian immigrants at the same time. It is particularly poignant at a time when the torment of Ukraine continues.
Dorothy Mandy
Dorothy Mandy
February 5, 2023
What a powerful yet moving story. The emotion that came through the words cannot be described. It left me speechless. This is definitely worth the read!
January 17, 2023
Christine Nykoluk’s Heart Stones, A Ukrainian Story of Love and Hope is a wonderfully insightful account of her grandparent’s journey to a new land. Myk heads to Winnipeg, Canada in 1914 with the promise of 160 acres of land on which to farm wheat. In hopes of a better future, he leaves behind his young family in Galicia, Ukraine just months before the outbreak of World War I. His wife Lilia must face the onslaught of war by herself, but with the help of family and friends she survives a difficult life, first on the farm and then in refugee camps. Nine long years later, the family is finally reunited in Canada.
The storyline of Heart Stones reads like a movie and yet it is a very real experience shared not only by Myk and Lilia, but also by many immigrants throughout history and indeed even now. TV images of the current war played through my mind as I read each chapter, but even though the story is set during the years of the First World War, it is not a story of fear and persecution. Death and disease are ever-present, but ultimately this is a story of kindness, of perseverance over hardship, and of love.
Every step of Myk and Lilia’s journey has been extensively researched. From the port in Rotterdam and the railway camp in Sioux Lookout to the train station in Lviv and the refugee camp in Gmund, the author vividly describes the Canada and Europe of the early 1900s. My ancestors also came to Canada from Galicia and now I can visualize the route they might have taken, the transport they might have used and the people they may have met. A CPR sponsor? A colonist car? Soldiers guarding the storeroom potatoes? The past comes alive with every paragraph and I give credit to the author for making the tangled history and confusing borders of eastern Europe much easier to understand.
Heart stones and poppies are meaningful images found throughout the novel. Lilia secretly hides stones in the shape of hearts in Myk’s bag when he embarks on his journey to Canada as a reminder of her love for him. Poppies, images of which grace the book cover and each chapter heading, are the symbols of remembrance, of love, and of a peaceful future. They are one of the only things Lilia takes with her when she goes on her journey to the new world. In addition to the Ukrainian heritage and customs which Myk and Lilia bring with them to Canada, the heart stones and poppies are also connections between the old world and the new, tangible reminders of the world they left behind.
Heart Stones is an unforgettable and moving book. Christine Nykoluk has written a lasting legacy to her grandparents, and it is a story that will resonate with generations of people who have their own immigration story to share.
The storyline of Heart Stones reads like a movie and yet it is a very real experience shared not only by Myk and Lilia, but also by many immigrants throughout history and indeed even now. TV images of the current war played through my mind as I read each chapter, but even though the story is set during the years of the First World War, it is not a story of fear and persecution. Death and disease are ever-present, but ultimately this is a story of kindness, of perseverance over hardship, and of love.
Every step of Myk and Lilia’s journey has been extensively researched. From the port in Rotterdam and the railway camp in Sioux Lookout to the train station in Lviv and the refugee camp in Gmund, the author vividly describes the Canada and Europe of the early 1900s. My ancestors also came to Canada from Galicia and now I can visualize the route they might have taken, the transport they might have used and the people they may have met. A CPR sponsor? A colonist car? Soldiers guarding the storeroom potatoes? The past comes alive with every paragraph and I give credit to the author for making the tangled history and confusing borders of eastern Europe much easier to understand.
Heart stones and poppies are meaningful images found throughout the novel. Lilia secretly hides stones in the shape of hearts in Myk’s bag when he embarks on his journey to Canada as a reminder of her love for him. Poppies, images of which grace the book cover and each chapter heading, are the symbols of remembrance, of love, and of a peaceful future. They are one of the only things Lilia takes with her when she goes on her journey to the new world. In addition to the Ukrainian heritage and customs which Myk and Lilia bring with them to Canada, the heart stones and poppies are also connections between the old world and the new, tangible reminders of the world they left behind.
Heart Stones is an unforgettable and moving book. Christine Nykoluk has written a lasting legacy to her grandparents, and it is a story that will resonate with generations of people who have their own immigration story to share.
February 24, 2023
Heart Stones by Christine Nykoluk
I Loved this book. I truly felt that I was there with the two young parents featured in this book through their dated chronicles. We followed the lives of a young man and his wife who were separated throughout their epic struggles from living in Galicia and into Canada until they were finally reunited 6 years later. The reader lives through this time through the lives of the two and family while they were separated during World War I. Myk left for Canada to start a new life for his family and expected to send for them soon afterwards. Lilia was left behind and the war came to Galicia two months later. They were both able to keep their dreams of an eventual reunion through the toughest of circumstances and stood firm until the reunion.
This is a fascinating book full of real-life experiences during a war and enemy occupation in Galicia. Amid the many trials and the toil and the destruction there was always a hope for better times ahead. The book talks about this region that has been a route between warring nations for hundreds of years. It is beautifully written and I personally would like to thank Christine for writing this chronicle of those days. It will be especially appreciated by families of the Ukrainian, Polish, Jewish people, and others who lived in that area at this time.
Here are important topics covered in this book:
1. The difficulties of living in an occupied country during wartime.
2. The discipline of survival for Lilia and the people of Galicia during their horrendous struggles during World War 1 and later.
3. Myk’s long journey, struggles, bravery, and hard work to achieve and succeed as an immigrant in a new country, in this case Canada.
4. A love story that survived a lack of communication and a separation over a number of years.
5. A family reunited.
This book covered much information that a family member of ours left unanswered. Perhaps she was too young to speak of it, but probably could not speak of the horrors she encountered in Galicia. We heard from her about speaking Ukrainian, living in a barn with her grandmother, and living on potatoes. They saw lots of men with guns and hid. It was to be a summer visit and she was there from age 6 to 11. The grandmother died in 1915 and family took her in.
This book is easily read, brings history to life, and gives us the setting of war experiences in Galicia, as well as in other war-torn countries. We are the descendants of immigrants and this should give us a greater appreciation of what they went through to immigrate to Canada and the United States to gain freedom, and a chance to live out their dreams.
Submitted by Lynne Kalley, United States
I Loved this book. I truly felt that I was there with the two young parents featured in this book through their dated chronicles. We followed the lives of a young man and his wife who were separated throughout their epic struggles from living in Galicia and into Canada until they were finally reunited 6 years later. The reader lives through this time through the lives of the two and family while they were separated during World War I. Myk left for Canada to start a new life for his family and expected to send for them soon afterwards. Lilia was left behind and the war came to Galicia two months later. They were both able to keep their dreams of an eventual reunion through the toughest of circumstances and stood firm until the reunion.
This is a fascinating book full of real-life experiences during a war and enemy occupation in Galicia. Amid the many trials and the toil and the destruction there was always a hope for better times ahead. The book talks about this region that has been a route between warring nations for hundreds of years. It is beautifully written and I personally would like to thank Christine for writing this chronicle of those days. It will be especially appreciated by families of the Ukrainian, Polish, Jewish people, and others who lived in that area at this time.
Here are important topics covered in this book:
1. The difficulties of living in an occupied country during wartime.
2. The discipline of survival for Lilia and the people of Galicia during their horrendous struggles during World War 1 and later.
3. Myk’s long journey, struggles, bravery, and hard work to achieve and succeed as an immigrant in a new country, in this case Canada.
4. A love story that survived a lack of communication and a separation over a number of years.
5. A family reunited.
This book covered much information that a family member of ours left unanswered. Perhaps she was too young to speak of it, but probably could not speak of the horrors she encountered in Galicia. We heard from her about speaking Ukrainian, living in a barn with her grandmother, and living on potatoes. They saw lots of men with guns and hid. It was to be a summer visit and she was there from age 6 to 11. The grandmother died in 1915 and family took her in.
This book is easily read, brings history to life, and gives us the setting of war experiences in Galicia, as well as in other war-torn countries. We are the descendants of immigrants and this should give us a greater appreciation of what they went through to immigrate to Canada and the United States to gain freedom, and a chance to live out their dreams.
Submitted by Lynne Kalley, United States
January 13, 2023
First of all I would like to say that I find the cover of Heart Stones very appealing and attractive. By page 10 I knew this was a book that I had to keep reading as I found the characters so identifiable and the dialogue so interesting.
Heart Stones is a beautifully told story, a love story about a Ukrainian couple on separate journeys. This book for me was so timely, touching on the Spanish flu and issues of the Ukraine and its people. But even more it is a book about hope for a young family to make a new life, in a new country, Canada. The writer has made me feel as if I am right there with Myk and Lilia in their struggles and their heart aches.
I hope the author will write a sequel as there is still more of a story to tell.
Heart Stones is a beautifully told story, a love story about a Ukrainian couple on separate journeys. This book for me was so timely, touching on the Spanish flu and issues of the Ukraine and its people. But even more it is a book about hope for a young family to make a new life, in a new country, Canada. The writer has made me feel as if I am right there with Myk and Lilia in their struggles and their heart aches.
I hope the author will write a sequel as there is still more of a story to tell.
May 19, 2023
Heart Stones is a wonderfully written story of a young Ukrainian family facing many hardships at home who make the difficult choice to risk the unknown and immigrate to Canada. The family must separate as immigrating across an ocean is no easy feat. The author creates a vivid picture life in a small farming community and the hardships that ensue when WW1 breaks out in Europe. As well as the equally daunting challenges facing Ukrainian immigrants who were once so welcomed in Canada but then treated with suspicion and contempt after the start of the war.
It’s a poignant and touching story of a family trying so hard to survive, to maintain hope when much is lost and to find each other across an ocean to create a better life for themselves and their children.
I felt immersed in the past and Ukrainian culture, learned of Canadian history that is little is spoken of. At times I couldn’t put the book down, I had to know what happened next. It’s a story of love, faith, hardship and perseverance told thoughtfully through the narrative of those who lived it.
It’s a poignant and touching story of a family trying so hard to survive, to maintain hope when much is lost and to find each other across an ocean to create a better life for themselves and their children.
I felt immersed in the past and Ukrainian culture, learned of Canadian history that is little is spoken of. At times I couldn’t put the book down, I had to know what happened next. It’s a story of love, faith, hardship and perseverance told thoughtfully through the narrative of those who lived it.
July 10, 2023
Random thoughts from a first time reviewer:
-Read Heart Stones and you will learn about the challenges of leaving home and settling in a new country while leaving your spouse and 2 young kids behind in Europe
-One of the biggest challenges was how to communicate and stay in touch in 1919 - no daily texts or emails to check in back then.
-How did they do it? With love, trust, patience, and the occasional letter, telegram, and a little help from the Red Cross.
-Things were so different 100 years ago but there were also some similar challenges such as political unrest in Europe and a large scale health care pandemic
-What surprised me? Well I have read a lot of the author’s technical writing and I expected more range management principles woven into the story.
- Kost is an interesting character, read Heart Stones to see if he was trustworthy or not.
-Read Heart Stones and you will learn about the challenges of leaving home and settling in a new country while leaving your spouse and 2 young kids behind in Europe
-One of the biggest challenges was how to communicate and stay in touch in 1919 - no daily texts or emails to check in back then.
-How did they do it? With love, trust, patience, and the occasional letter, telegram, and a little help from the Red Cross.
-Things were so different 100 years ago but there were also some similar challenges such as political unrest in Europe and a large scale health care pandemic
-What surprised me? Well I have read a lot of the author’s technical writing and I expected more range management principles woven into the story.
- Kost is an interesting character, read Heart Stones to see if he was trustworthy or not.
June 5, 2023
I really enjoyed this book. I normally won't read cultural fiction books but I cried for the last half of this one. There are strong emotions in every corner of this beautiful piece.
The only note I have about the book otherwise is that some sentences I skimmed over at the end, and that was only because it was slightly repetitive.
However, I have recommended this book to several people already.
It was an emotional journey for me, and it was nice to feel like I was emersed into Ukrainian culture. One of my favorited parts of this novel is how much research and thought the author did towards Ukrainian lore.
Well done!
The only note I have about the book otherwise is that some sentences I skimmed over at the end, and that was only because it was slightly repetitive.
However, I have recommended this book to several people already.
It was an emotional journey for me, and it was nice to feel like I was emersed into Ukrainian culture. One of my favorited parts of this novel is how much research and thought the author did towards Ukrainian lore.
Well done!
May 5, 2023
I read historical fiction in part to learn more detail about a time and place that had been unfamiliar to me. I also read it to follow a good story. Heart Stones comes through superbly on both these counts. I was deeply involved with the main characters, Myk, who leaves his family in Ukraine to set up a better life for them in Canada, and Lilia, who stays behind with their two children. World War I, however, breaks out, and thus begins a long and painful separation.
Chapters go back and forth between what is happening to Myk and Lilia. We learn of the plight of Ukrainian immigrants in Canada at the time, who are now considered enemy aliens because they have Austrian passports. Lilia's village is brutalized, and she is forced to flea with their two children, spending years in refugee camps. The description of the daily lives of the characters is enlightening and heart-wrenching. Still, the subtitle, "A Ukarinian Immigration Story of Love and Hope," keeps our own hope alive as we root for the young family.
Chapters go back and forth between what is happening to Myk and Lilia. We learn of the plight of Ukrainian immigrants in Canada at the time, who are now considered enemy aliens because they have Austrian passports. Lilia's village is brutalized, and she is forced to flea with their two children, spending years in refugee camps. The description of the daily lives of the characters is enlightening and heart-wrenching. Still, the subtitle, "A Ukarinian Immigration Story of Love and Hope," keeps our own hope alive as we root for the young family.
March 2, 2023
This story is interesting and the characters are well developed. Her grandparent’s suffering, loyalty and love are well described by the author. The book is a good history lesson about Ukraine before, during and after World War I. The other interesting history is the immigration of Ukrainians to Canada, trying to save enough to buy farms while working for low wages building railroads.
January 13, 2025
As a Ukrainian Canadian, this books reminds me of the trials that Ukrainian had coming to Canada. Our stories need to be told.
January 10, 2023
By chance, I visited the World War I memorial for the Ukrainian civilian internees in the Yoho National Forest this past July. There is a trilingual commemorative plaque and a statue entitled "Last Man Standing” by John Boxtel. The bouquet of sunflowers placed at the statue drew my attention, it reminded me of Russia’s current war on Ukraine which I follow daily via Volodymyr Zelenskyy‘s Instagram posts. There was a large card that read “In memory of the thousands of Ukrainians and other Europeans who were unjustly interred during Canada's first national internment operations, 1914 - 1920. Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association”. The sunflowers were harkening to an earlier time. The suffering and triumph of these Ukrainians immigrants is told through the lives of Christine Nykoluk’s ancestors, Lilia and Myk, in her new novel Heart Stones. Nykoluk’s historic research and heartfelt story answers questions that any family historian whose Galician ancestors emigrated to Canada during the turn of the last century might have. Why did they emigrate, how did they travel, was it hard to leave their village, and who did they leave behind? The novel is spiced with Ukrainian foods, customs, and superstitions. It’s enriched with friendships forged during the struggle to survive during World War I; Myk in Canada and Lilia in Galicia. I highly recommend Heart Stones "A Ukrainian Immigration Story of Love and Hope.".
Cecile Węta Jensen author of Sto Lat: A Modern Guide to Polish Genealogy and her forthcoming novel Coral Beads and Poppy Seeds
Cecile Węta Jensen author of Sto Lat: A Modern Guide to Polish Genealogy and her forthcoming novel Coral Beads and Poppy Seeds
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews