Life in Spite of Everything by Victoria Donovan: A sad and angry history of Donbas
Life in Spite of Everything: Tales from the Ukrainian East
Author
:
Victoria Donovan
ISBN-13
:
978-1917092142
Publisher
:
Daunt Books
Guideline Price
:
£22
Eastern Ukraine's natural wealth has long been a blessing and a curse for people living there, creating jobs but also making the region a target for ruthless exploitation of its resources, often accompanied by disregard – or worse – for its residents.
One hundred and fifty years after
Russia
was inviting British, European and American businessmen to industrialise mining of coal, salt and gypsum in eastern Ukraine – which it had seized from the Cossacks a century earlier – now US president
Donald Trump
wants to take possession of its rare earths and other minerals as 'payback' for US military aid
given to Kyiv since
Russia's full-scale invasion
in 2022.
He claims that a minerals deal is almost ready and discussions are under way to decide what land Kyiv would lose in a US-brokered peace settlement with Moscow – talk that reduces eastern Ukraine to a blank space on the map and a list of resources to be carved up between capitals, depriving its residents of a say in its future.
Victoria Donovan places the people of the Donbas area – generally taken to comprise the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk – at the heart of her book Life in Spite of Everything, and through their stories she uncovers layers of local identity and history like a geologist studying the strata of this coveted land.
READ MORE
She explores Donbas and its many meanings by following local friends and acquaintances through their homeland, 'centring' the story on them rather than the powerful forces – from tsarist colonisers of the 18th century to Trump and Russian dictator
Vladimir Putin
today – for whom this was merely a place to be seized and plundered.
[
The Marriage Vendetta by Caroline Madden: A charming and original debut
Opens in new window
]
Donovan, a professor at the University of St Andrews in Scotland, intersperses her text with short chapters by Donbas natives, which shimmer with love for the cities, nature, history and culture of a region that was widely dismissed as a backwater of filthy industry, crime and corruption even before Russia began its attack on the area in 2014.
Most of those quoted will have now fled to safer parts of Ukraine and some will have seen their hometowns obliterated. Donovan says that witnessing this made it impossible to write with academic detachment, and instead she has produced a sad and angry history of Donbas that befits the agony experienced by its people.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Irish Sun
2 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Fears over WWE with promotion heading to Saudi Arabia for Night of Champions amid Iran's warning to US
FEARS are rising over the WWE's Night of Champions after Iran's warning to the US. The wrestling promotion have scheduled the big fixture for June 28 - next Saturday. 6 WWE's Night of Champions is scheduled for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia next Saturday Credit: Getty 6 Travelling to the Middle East could be complicated by the US' bombing of Iranian nuclear sites Credit: Reuters And the action is due to take place at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. John Cena is expected to be part of the action, defending his Undisputed WWE Championship against CM Punk. However, fans are growing increasingly worried about the Night of Champions. It comes after READ MORE IN WWE America used covert tactics and the world's biggest conventional bombs to inflict the devastating bombardment. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said Operation Midnight Hammer was 'an incredible and overwhelming success' that took months and weeks of planning. But Iran - who are set to meet with the Kremlin on Monday - vowed the "outrageous" attacks would have "everlasting consequences". And an Iranian state television anchor claimed that "every American citizen or military personnel in the region is now a target" and that Iran will finish the conflict Trump started. Most read in WWE The reason this affects the WWE show is because the United States have bases in Saudi Arabia - thus fitting the category of targets outlined by Iranian TV. To complicate matters further, the UK have advised citizens - including wrestlers and WWE fans - 6 6 On Sunday, the British Government also updated information for Saudi Arabia, advising against all travel within 10km of the Yemen border and all but essential travel within 10-80km of the Yemen border. And fans looking forward to the Night of Champions are growing increasingly concerned. One wrote: "With the ever rapid developments happening in that part of the world and especially with what's happened tonight, there's a high chance this ends up getting cancelled. At this point some of the wrestlers might even decide to back out for safety." Another said: "If there was ever a time for WWE to cancel a Saudi Arabia show now is the time they're seriously about to send their entire roster right here in a week." A third added: "Needs to be cancelled and moved to Vegas immediately." And a fourth commented: "To be fair, the event should be postponed or scrapped altogether. Talent's safety should be the primary concern for any wrestling company." WWE is yet to make any statement on next weekend's event. SunSport has contacted WWE for comment. 6 President Donald Trump and his officials labelled the devastating attacks as a huge success Credit: Alamy 6 Satellite images of the Fordow complex where US bombs were dropped Credit: Reuters
The Irish Sun
3 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
‘Very volatile conflict', says Harris as evacuation of 15 Irish citizens from Israel underway amid US strikes on Iran
EFFORTS are under way to evacuate 15 Irish citizens from Israel, Tanaiste Simon Harris has said. The Foreign Affairs Minister confirmed that an operation was ongoing to evacuate 15 Advertisement 2 US strikes on Iran had made a 'volatile situation even more dangerous' Credit: AFP or licensors 2 Simon Harris confirmed that the evacuation of Irish citizens from Israel is currently underway Credit: � 2025 PA Media, All Rights Reserved He said they were working with a smaller number of citizens in Around 29 Irish citizens in Iran had registered with the Irish embassy and around 200 in Mr Harris said he spoke to Iran's deputy foreign minister on Sunday, at their request, who was 'full of anger'. Talking to the reporters at Government Buildings, he said: 'He did say to me that it was the view of Iran that the aggressors would have to learn lessons and pay a price. Advertisement READ MORE ON ISRAEL-IRAN 'Of course I articulated in the strongest possible terms that Ireland and the Mr Harris said the Taoiseach They said they are in close contact with their European counterparts before a meeting of EU foreign leaders on Monday and of EU leaders later in the week. Advertisement Most read in Irish News Exclusive The 'Iran should commit not to develop nuclear weapons and disavow its nuclear and uranium enrichment programme. The Sun reports from inside as Israel as tensions flare following US air strikes ' BREACH OF INTERNATIONAL LAWS Martin added that the escalation on Sunday should not draw attention away from the Advertisement He said: 'We shouldn't lose sight of the catastrophe that is still unfolding in Gaza while the war between Iran and Israel continues. 'What is happening in Staff from Ireland's embassy in Harris said there were no plans to withdraw Irish troops and that 'decisions are being made constantly' to ensure their safety. Advertisement 'VOLATILE CONFLICT' When asked whether he supported US President 'We're now entering a moment of particular danger, because I think the chances now of a spiral of escalation are more likely than ever before, and there is a real prospect now of the international community losing all control of this very, very volatile conflict.' He said there was only a 'very small' number of Irish citizens, many dual nationals, seeking an evacuation, and they were working with European counterparts. He said a significant update on this would be available in the hours ahead. Advertisement 'EXTRAORDINARILY DANGEROUS TIME' Speaking on 'But imagine if we were waking up this morning to a situation where radiation levels were extraordinarily high, and the health and human danger that that would have presented far beyond Iran as well. So this is an extraordinarily dangerous time.' He said that it was 'sadly true' that international legal norms are not being adhered to, citing the He said there was a diplomatic process in train and his understanding from readouts was 'there was a commitment from the Iranian side to further talks'. Advertisement POSSESSION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS Harris said 'The way to address this was always through a negotiated solution. Any alternative to that is simply too dangerous for civilians, for the 'Together with my EU counterparts, we will in the coming hours and days discuss and review the latest developments and consider the next steps Europe can usefully play to support de-escalation.' Minister for Culture Patrick O'Donovan said people woke up on Sunday 'terrified, really, to be quite honest, about the prospect of what's unfolding'. Advertisement 'TERRIFYING' He told RTE's The Week In Politics it is 'terrifying' for citizens in Iran and Israel. He said: 'It does take great people to make leaps of faith in particular places in time to come forward, whether it was in relation to (Anwar el-Sadat) in Egypt, and later on in relation to 'Because, ultimately, as the Taoiseach said, this is terrifying – not only for the innocent communities that are living in both countries, but as well as that for the neighbouring countries in the Middle East, who we obviously all hope are not drawn into a much bigger conflict.'
Irish Examiner
3 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
RTÉ coverage of Pope Francis's funeral and election of Pope Leo cost €150k
RTÉ's coverage of the death of Pope Francis and the subsequent election of Pope Leo cost the broadcaster €150,000. Figures released under Freedom of Information show that the broadcaster's extensive coverage of the death of the pontiff included €4,200 in venue hire and over €1,200 in subsistence costs for management grade staff from Radio 1, with the overall costs of travel, hotels, and subsistence coming in at around €150,000 in total. RTÉ provided hours of coverage across its platforms upon the death of Pope Francis in April, including his funeral and the election of American cardinal Robert Francis Prevost as the 267th leader of the Catholic Church and the successor to Francis as Pope Leo. The station's output included a special broadcast of its flagship Prime Time programme with records showing that staff airfares and hotels for that show cost around €3,600. While the cost of flights was one of the larger outlays, some airfares came in at as little as €13. The world's media and thousands of pilgrims descended on the Vatican City upon the death of Pope Francis, with mourners standing in line for hours to pay their final respects while his body lay in state in St Peter's Basilica ahead of his funeral. That was followed by coverage ahead of the papal conclave which lasted just over a day and a half and resulted in the election of the first American pope. In response to the FOI request, RTÉ said: "In relation to hotels, it is not possible to extract a precise spend on this alone so we have included 'staff subsistence' which would cover this and other costs. "Similar to civil and public servants, RTÉ personnel were paid to a set 'day rate' which would cover the cost of accommodation as well as food etc. "[T]he costs incurred were necessary to allow RTÉ fulfil its obligations to provide comprehensive coverage of two major global events across radio, television and online in both Irish and English. "Those who travelled provided many hours of coverage for all radio and television news and current affairs programming as well as online content spanning the days between the death of Pope Francis to the election of Pope Leo." Read More Pope Leo XIV calls for aid to reach Gaza in first general audience
