Seconds before the Russian drone struck, Viktor Kruglov was thinking about textbooks -- tens of thousands of them, and how to get them to Ukrainian schools faster. 

Minutes later, a second explosive-laden Shahed drone hit, laying waste to the main hub of his publishing house, Ranok, in northeastern Kharkiv.

 "Steel was blazing and burning," Kruglov said of the August 1 attack, adding that the huge warehouse's reinforced concrete melted and the roof caved in.

 The blaze burned for almost a week, reducing millions of books to ash.

 Ukraine's publishing industry is facing its worst crisis yet, driven by targeted Russian attacks -- part of a broader culture war in which nearly 5,000 cathedrals, churches, museums, theatres and other cultural sites have been destroyed or damaged and 35,000 art objects looted.

 More than 13 million books -- a third of the country's annual print run -- were destroyed in two months this summer, causing at least USD 39.3 million (1.75 billion hryvnias) in damage, the Ministry of Culture said.

 Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov did not respond to an Associated Press request for comment about the Russian strikes on Ukraine's publishing infrastructure.

 Despite a surge in demand for Ukrainian-language books following Russia's 2022 invasion, the destruction is setting the industry back -- and the losses go beyond money. Publishers are expected to invest less in debut authors, threatening the future of Ukrainian literature. Small, independent houses may publish less or close altogether, narrowing the market, while larger publishers play it safe and lean on bestsellers.

 "This is a deliberate policy of Russia because they understand that culture is what makes us feel resilient, what makes us feel the owners of our land, of our destiny," said Tetiana Berezhna, Ukraine's culture minister.