BOOK BOOST LAUNCH

We warmly invite you to join us at VOX-POP on January 30, 5-7 pm, for a new year’s event that embodies a collective spirit of support and generosity – the launch of Book Boost, a new initiative by the University of New Europe.

At this event, we treat you to a rich cultural program, featuring readings with authors and , and a mini writing workshop/performance by artists and . PhD researcher , Slavic-studies alumni Marijn Verlangen and Mari Janssen host the programme together with professor (Department of Slavic Languages and Cultures, University of Amsterdam). Book Boost is a fundraising project with dual benefits: offering uplifting gifts to at-risk students and academic & arts professionals from Central- and Eastern Europe and supporting the Ukrainian charity , which aids children affected by the Russian aggression. Attendees will have the opportunity to purchase prints through donations and participate in a lottery – wonderful prizes await!

How does it work? This year, the solidarity network for students, scholars, and culture professionals at risk teams up with the Amsterdam-based bookshop and publisher . A number of thinkers and makers at risk from UNE’s support programme have registered to receive a book of their choice via the bookshop. We will fundraise money to cover the costs. The publisher will contribute 5% of each transaction to the Bright Kids Charity, with a guaranteed minimum contribution of €200. It’s a small act that has a big impact: what goes around comes around.

You can donate through this

Why is this important? Due to the ongoing war in Europe, countless students, scholars, artists, and cultural professionals face significant personal and financial challenges. While they are separated from homes, loved ones, or otherwise in difficult circumstances, even a small gesture, like gifting a book, can brighten their day. More importantly, every donation directly supports Ukrainian children, nurturing the next generation of thinkers. For every Euro contributed, UNE ensures it counts!

Join us to listen, engage, and help fundraise to bring joy to scholars and thinkers at risk.

Program Schedule:

• 17:00-17:10 Welcome from the Organizers

• 17:10-17:30 Readings by Dore van Duivenbode and Lisa Weeda

• 17:30-18:00 Drinks, Lottery, and Fundraising Market

• 18:00-18:45 Writing Workshop/Performance by Liza Bukina and Katja Markelova

Participation is free, but registration is required. Hurry to sign up for your free ticket on Eventbrite, spots are limited!

Book Boost visual identity by .

The initiative was made possible thanks to the University of New Europe and support from the Leiden University Centre for the Arts in Society.

is a writer and journalist of Polish-Dutch descent. She studied History at Utrecht University and made her debut with the book My Polish House (Uitgeverij De Geus, 2019) about her youth in Oswiecim (Auschwitz), the city where her mother was born. My Polish House won the Bob den Uyl Prize for the best journalistic travel book of 2019. This year, her second book Oerbos (Uitgeverij De Geus, 2024) has been published, about the battle for European nature. Dore was also seen in Moja Polska!, the 5-part VPRO documentary series through Poland and in the online series about sustainability Dus Wat Gaan Wij Doen? for KRO-NCRV and the journalistic VPRO series Gazeta, the Polish newspaper under fire about press freedom. She has made radio documentaries for the VPRO and is a much sought-after speaker on radio and television programs.

Dutch-Ukrainian is a writer, literary program maker, theater maker, and virtual reality director. Language is always the basis of her work, but its form is free. Ukraine – her grandmother’s homeland – often occupies a central place in her work. In recent years this region of interest has grown: Central and Eastern Europe are increasingly seeping into her work. Lisa’s bestknown works include her VR installation Rozsypne (2019), her Libris-shortlisted debut novel Aleksandra (2022), her novel Dans dans revolutie (2024) and the immersive installation of the same name. The latter received a five-star review in Dutch quality newspaper Volkskrant and was nominated for a Golden Calf in Best Digital Culture Production 2024. Her work has been translated in eight countries.

photo by Esther Lutgendorff

is a transdisciplinary artist influenced by her Ukrainian and Tanzanian heritage. A collector, storyteller, generator and creative doula, she applies performance, film and sound to explore themes of human potential, destruction, freedom, and interconnectedness. With her art, inspired by timeless knowledge and the mundane daily life, she embraces entanglements and the fluidity of identity. With a talent for recognizing patterns and the need for simplicity, her practice encourages authenticity. Liza holds space for transformation, inviting reflection on the shared human experience and belonging across generations, cultures and species. Liza graduated as Theaterdocent from ArtEZ University of the Arts in Zwolle.

is a masterful space holder and teacher of advanced Somatics and Energetics who bridges ancient healing wisdom with the latest nuanced body science. Born into a lineage of medicine women and forged in the fires of C-level corporate leadership, she transforms practitioners into somatic wizards through her unique blend of ancestral wisdom and scientific understanding. At her School of Somatic Wizardry, Katja guides experienced practitioners through awakening their own potency and accessing the field of infinite possibilities for the sake of re-enchanting the Collective Body.

Marijn Verlangen is a graduated Slavist who currently studies European Policy at the University of Amsterdam and International Relations in Historical Perspective at Utrecht University. In 2023, he was affiliated as a program maker to debating and cultural centre De Balie, and in 2024, he interned at the political department of the Embassy of the Netherlands in Poland. His MA research focuses on the cultural diplomacy and cultural policy of Central and Eastern Europe.

is Professor of Literature and of Slavic Studies at the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and co-founder of the academic solidarity network UNE (the University of New Europe). Her interests include contemporary and historical (Central- and Eastern-European and global) art, literature, cultural heritage, and social media. Among other publications, She is author of Sincerity after Communism (Yale University Press 2017) and co-editor of Imperfections: Studies in Mistakes, Flaws, and Failures (Bloomsbury 2022, ed. Kelly/Kemper/Rutten).

photo by Esther de Jongh

Anna Greszta is a PhD researcher studying (pop)cultural representations of the Russian war in Ukraine as part of the ERC-funded project at the Amsterdam School for Cultural Analysis (ASCA), University of Amsterdam. She is also a co-founder of the Amsterdam-based grassroots charity initiative and a member of the University of New Europe network and the Book Boost project coordinator.

photo by Francesca Dondi

Mari Janssen is a Slavist and historian, currently pursuing a research master in History at the University of Amsterdam. She works at bookstore and publishing house Pegasus and for the University of New Europe. In 2023, she was an Editorial Assistant for the academic journal Slavic Literatures. For her MA research, she mostly studies environmental history and philosophy.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

VOX-POP, 9 Binnengasthuisstraat, Amsterdam, Netherlands