Questions tagged [zinky-boys]
Questions about the book 'Zinky Boys' (USA) or 'Boys in Zinc' (UK) by Svetlana Alexievich. Use with the tags [svetlana-alexievich] and [belarusian-literature].
8
questions
1
vote
0
answers
39
views
What happened to the USSR hospital at Khmelnitsky?
An interview with a major in Zinky Boys (day 2, track 8 in the audiobook) referred to a hospital of some kind in Khmelnitsky for long-term casualties who couldn't or wouldn't go home for various ...
0
votes
2
answers
64
views
Was Vietnam referring to the Vietnam War in Zinky Boys?
In an interview with a major (track 8, day 2 in the audiobook), the interviewee mentions having friends who were in Ethiopia, Angola, and Vietnam. Is this likely referring to the Vietnam War (except, ...
4
votes
2
answers
95
views
What were Bulgarian biscuits?
In Zinky Boys (track 7 in the audiobook), a female doctor complained that the girls she stayed with mostly talked about things like rubles, foreign currency vouchers, and how to steal meat and other ...
4
votes
0
answers
71
views
Who wrote this particular poem in Zinky Boys?
Zinky Boys refers to the following (rather morbid in my opinion) poem:
Women and wine are fine
But a real man needs more
The sweet taste of war
The interviewee mentioned that that bit of verse was ...
3
votes
1
answer
84
views
Why did so many people in Zinky Boys give the temperature as 70 degrees Celsius?
In Zinky Boys, numerous people quoted complained that the temperature was 70 degrees Celsius. In fact, so far, everyone who mentioned an exact temperature gave that as the number. Why was that?
3
votes
1
answer
86
views
Why were Afghanistan veterans treated so poorly relative to World War II veterans?
A recurring theme in Zinky Boys is how little the general population knew about the war in Afghanistan (especially at first). The Soviet government told everyone that they were building bridges and ...
2
votes
1
answer
47
views
What was the long list of names in the beginning of "Zinky Boys"?
Toward the beginning of Zinky Boys, Svetlana Alexievich states that she didn't use people's real names in the book (mostly to protect their privacy) but kept a record of them in case her sources ever ...
3
votes
1
answer
63
views
Why did Svetlana Alexievich write "Zinky Boys"?
In the beginning of Zinky Boys, Svetlana Alexievich states that she didn't want to write another war book and talks about how strongly and negatively writing her previous war book had affected her. ...