Writing the Seige of Leningrad

Ms. Simmons and Ms. Perlina read excerpts from their book Writing the Siege of Leningrad, published by University of Pittsburgh Press. Unable to complete a military offensive on Leningrad, the German army initiated a blockade from September 1941 until January 1944 that caused the deaths of at least one million citizens. While most of the males of the city were conscripted to fight, the women and children were left to endure the hardships caused by the blockade. Nina Perlina, a survivor of the siege, and Cynthia Simmons conducted interviews with survivors and collected letters, diaries, poetry, fiction, memoirs and oral histories in preparing the book. The anthology contains tales of lost relatives; meager rations supplemented with sawdust, glue and grass; crime and cannibalism. Ms. Simmons and Ms. Perlina answered questions from the audience after the readings, which were presented in English and Russian. close