“At Eight Years Old I Was at War” is a memoir by Ivonka Survilla about escape, war, family, and survival.

The book tells the story of eight-year-old Ivonka leaving Belarus with her family in 1944. Today Survilla describes those ten months as the most dangerous period of her life — a journey between life and death experienced through the eyes of a child.

Alongside the story of wartime escape, the memoir becomes a deeply personal reflection on the boundless love of parents trying to protect their children during war.

Originally written in French, the book is published in Belarusian for the first time. The edition also includes an editor’s note, a biographical essay about the author, archival photographs from her life, and reproductions of selected artworks.

The publication is dedicated to the 90th anniversary of Ivonka Survilla and stands as both a tribute and a testimony to an extraordinary life devoted to Belarus.

Language: Belarusian
Cover: hardcover
Number of pages: 178
Place of publication: Poland
Year of publication: 2026