The following version of this book was used to create the guide: Kaminsky, Ilya. Deaf Republic. Graywolf Press, 2019.

Ilya Kaminsky's Deaf Republic is a collection of 59 poems. Though the enclosed works can function as stand-alone pieces outside the context of the collection, together they act as fragments of a narrative whole. The following summary employs a conventional linear form, and focuses on the story unfolding across the poems.

The poem "We Lived Happily during the War," precedes Act One. In this piece, the unidentified first person speaker describes his tangential involvement in political protests. Living in America, he is detached from overseas conflicts.

In Act One, "The Townspeople Tell the Story of Sonya and Alfonso," a young couple, Sonya and Alfonso, stage a puppet show in Vasenka's Central Square against the orders of occupying soldiers. In the middle of the performance, an army jeep arrives. The Sergeant emerges from the vehicle and commands the townspeople to disperse. Petya, a young deaf boy, and Alfonso's cousin, laughs and refuses. When he spits on the Sergeant, the Sergeant angers and shoots Petya.

For days following, Petya's body remains in the square. Alfonso covers his face with a newspaper. Despite the horror of seeing his young cousin's body, Alfonso forces himself to regard the scene. Later, Sonya wraps her pregnant body around Petya's. When the townspeople see what she is doing, they bring her milk and a pillow. Eventually Alfonso joins her, wrapping his body around hers. The Vasenka townspeople then form several circles around them, forming a barricade. The soldiers shoot into the crowd, and drag Petya's body away. Alfonso wishes they could give God the finger, but realizes it would be useless.

Alfonso and Sonya fell in love when they were young. Lying by his wife in the square, Alfonso seems to drift into memories of their early days together, having sex and showering.

In the days following Petya's death, all of Vasenka pretends not to hear. Their voluntary deafness is a form of protection against the soldiers. Furious, the soldiers begin posting signs around the town, insisting that deafness is a disease. The people continue resisting, even as their city is destroyed boy bombs.

When Sonya has the baby, she names her Anushka. Anushka grants her parents quiet and peace from the violence. Just three days later, however, the soldiers arrest and kill Sonya in the square. Left alone with Anushka, Alfonso becomes angry, even killing a soldier in the piazza. Shortly thereafter, the soldiers arrest Alfonso and take away the baby. The townspeople do nothing as they watch the soldiers brutalize and murder Alfonso.

In Act Two, "The Townspeople Tell the Story of Momma Galya," the Vasenka townspeople see local theater owner, Momma Galya, as the luckiest and most courageous woman in the country. She is bold and brazen, even during wartime, and encourages her fellow symbols to resist the soldiers. One day, while soldiers watch her puppeteers kissing in the street, Momma Galya sneaks into the checkpoint and steals back Anushka.

She grows to love the child, seeing her as a reason to live. She does everything in her power to protect her.

Desperate to arrest Momma Galya, the soldiers visit her theater every night. They fail to see Momma Galya and her puppeteers schemes, however. While a woman dances on stage, the girls lure the soldiers into the back of the theater, strangle them, and drag their bodies into the alley.

Eventually the townspeople begin blaming Momma Galya for their family members' arrests. They attack her in the square and steal the baby from her.

Once Vasenka eventually surrenders, people quickly forget the war. However, some nights, the citizens dim their lights and teach their children sign language.

The collection's final poem, "In a Time of Peace," appears after the close of Act Two. In this piece, the speaker watches his neighbors watching videos of police brutality on their phones. Though they live in a supposedly peaceful country, such instances of violence occur often. The citizens watch, but do nothing.