A Small, Stubborn Town: Life, death and defiance in Ukraine – ‘The mesmerising story of how in the face of a mighty army, ordinary people can say "No."' Mail on Sunday

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Their weapons were a box of grenades, AK-47s and NLAW anti-armour missiles, supplied by the British. Svetlana, a grandmother with arthritis, reacts in fury when Russian troops turn her cottage into their blood-soaked headquarters. His slim 135-page book is a riveting and vividly written account of how Voznesensk fought back against Russia’s war machine – and won. The dignity of very ordinary people looking around, shrugging, saying essentially "well, I guess that'll have to be me" and making a stand. This short punchy account of a few days in the now interminable invasion by Putin of Ukraine is fascinating on many levels.

A gripping work of reportage that tells the story of a pivotal moment in Ukraine's war, this is a real-life thriller about ordinary people facing extraordinary circumstances with resilience, humour and ingenuity. One of them shouted to the Ukrainian volunteers sitting in it and out of ammunition: “Guys, we’re with you. Andrey Kurkov (Ukrainian author of “Grey Bees”): It would be wonderful if the story told in this beautiful little book were the author's invention. If Russian troops could capture Voznesensk, and its small, strategic bridge, then they might be able to seize the whole Black Sea Coast and end the war in days.

Lindsey HIlsum (Channel Four News): “This gripping account is the Russian invasion of Ukraine in microcosm. Photograph: State Emergency Service Of Ukraine/Reuters View image in fullscreen A building in Voznesensk destroyed by a Russian missile. This is an improbable but true story of incredible courage, heartbreaking loss (Voznesensk's defence wasn't a bloodless one) and sheer bloody-mindedness. In March 2022, one week after Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, a small farming town in the south of the country became the unlikely focus of the Kremlin’s attention. Philippe Sands'We are touched by the courage and dignity of Andrew Harding's characters - qualities that the author must surely possess in equal measure.

Fiona Hill (Russia expert and author of “There Is Nothing For You Here): “Fascinating, vivid, often harrowing, and also deeply moving. A brilliant insight into the early days of the war in Ukraine through the story of one incredible town. This short book gives helpful insights to a war that can feel a little abstract for those of us on the other side of the globe! But at the core of it, it's a very gentle and kind book in a panorama of events that are decidedly short on gentleness and kindness, and you got to appreciate that. Eventually the Russians pulled out, abandoning many armoured vehicles, “supplies spilling out of them like the guts of gored animals”.Cinematic and gripping - a must read for anyone trying to grasp both the human dimension and larger dynamics of events in this brutal contemporary war. Luke Harding in The Observer: “This gripping story is the literary equivalent of a superb miniature painting. Superb writing and poetic storytelling sheds light on the heroic spirit and immense bravery of ordinary people determined to defend their homeland. Looking at different perspectives, we see how grandmas, young alcoholics, Russian soldiers, and Ukrainian defenders all respond. When Russian troops approached the small farming town of Voznesensk, they were not expecting a battle.