This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.
Zachary Valtschanoff (1992) is an author of poetry, prose poetry and short story collections.
His first book "Revelations" (2020) and its sequels: “Revelations – Part II” (2021) and “Revelations – Part III” (2021), represent a trilogy of miniatures.
His next books, “Book of Feast (2022) and “Book of Famine” (2022) form a duology of contradictory light and dark themes.
His latest book, “Echoes of Reason and Madness” (2023) explores the short poetry form.
Reviewed by Robin Goodfellow for Readers' Favorite
Book of Famine by Zachary Valtschanoff is a poetry book detailing an individual’s struggles confronting the cruelty around and within him. The work is divided into three parts. War outlines the cowardice the narrator must face as he fights against a “rat”, himself, and others who desire his downfall. Plague details the harsh burden the narrator’s life has left on him, as hopelessness eventually consumes him. Death illustrates the narrator succumbing to addiction, though there is a seed of resilience against his weakness.
It’s quite interesting that Zachary Valtschanoff decided to name the chapters of his book after three of the four horsemen of the apocalypse. At first, I was confused as to why he wouldn’t include “conquest” in the midst. Then I realized that, with war and plague, conquest has already won. From then on the narrator struggles with his mental and emotional well-being, hence the rats that have come sniffing for his blood. I specifically enjoyed Plague, which details the codependency the narrator suffered, so much so that to cope with it he would ultimately resort to addiction. As bleak as Death begins, it becomes transformative, to the extent that you can only hope there’s a better ending for the narrator and that all his suffering has not been meaningless. Book of Famine is a dark, ominous work that depicts an individual’s fight with his shadows, and how, despite all the horrors that came with it, he still found hope in the end. I would recommend this book to readers who enjoy realistic portrayals of mental illness.
