Your Presence Is Mandatory

A Novel

By: Sasha Vasilyuk

Narrated by: Sam Rushton

Length: 11 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

A riveting debut novel, based on real events, about a World War II veteran with a secret that could land him in the Gulag, and his family who are forced to live in the shadow of all he has not told them.

Ukraine, 2007. Yefim Shulman, husband, grandfather and war veteran, was beloved by his family and his coworkers. But in the days after his death, his widow Nina finds a letter to the KGB in his briefcase. Yefim had a lifelong secret, and his confession forces them to reassess the man they thought they knew and the country he had defended.

In 1941, Yefim is a young artillerist on the border between the Soviet Union and Germany, eager to defend his country and his large Jewish family against Hitler's forces. But surviving the war requires sacrifices Yefim never imagined-and even when the war ends, his fight isn't over. He must conceal his choices from the KGB and from his family.

Spanning seven decades between World War II and the current Russia-Ukraine conflict, Your Presence Is Mandatory traces the effect Yefim's coverup had on the lives of Nina, their two children and grandchildren. In the process, Sasha Vasilyuk shines a light on one family caught between two totalitarian regimes, and the grace they find in the course of their survival.

©2024 Sasha Vasilyuk (P)2024 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

Critic reviews

'At once a historical epic, an engrossing family saga, and an astute examination of morality, survival, hope, and love, Your Presence Is Mandatory is a stunning feat. The emotional impact of reading Sasha Vasilyuk's gripping debut is immense. I sat with the vivid characters Vasilyuk has created for hours after reading, and I continue to think of them. Your Presence Is Mandatory is a book to last generations, and one I won't soon forget.' (Lara Prescott, New York Times bestselling author of THE SECRETS WE KEPT)

'An absorbing historical drama that spans from WWII to the current Russian-Ukraine conflict. Vasiluk is tender and caring with her characters and her setting. Fans of All The Light We Cannot See will find the perfect historical novel with this book.' (Debutiful, "Most Anticipated Debut Books of 2024")

'This extraordinary debut is the best kind of historical fiction—an emotionally complex and heartrending saga that takes us to unfamiliar places in unfamiliar times and makes them feel known and lived.' (Meg Waite Clayton, internationally bestselling author of THE POSTMISTRESS OF PARIS)

'Wonderfully written, elegiac and necessary, Sasha Vasiyuk uncovers the history behind the recent headlines with great skill and grace.' (Gary Shteyngart, author of OUR COUNTRY FRIENDS)

'An engrossing family saga and a secret key for anyone who wants to understand how history has brought Ukrainians and Russians to where they are today.' (Boris Fishman, author of SAVAGE FEAST)