Beyond War - Getting to Know Ukraine Better
Volume-3 | Issue-4: Sharing great resources and literature to understand Ukraine beyond war.
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This week’s theme — Getting to know Ukraine better
“Sometimes the past catches up with the present and drags you into a future you don’t want. So it happened to me with the novel Grey Bees. I wrote it four years ago when the war in the Donbas ``settled” and became the norm. When shots and explosions were heard less often, but quite regularly. When the inhabitants of the grey zone and other villages near the front line became fatalists and planted potatoes in fields littered with mines and shells.
When the novel came out, I realized that it would soon become further proof of the tragic history of Ukraine, the history of the war in the Donbass.”
– Audrey Kurkov, author of Grey Bees
This week, as the war gets intense, we dive deeper into Ukraine’s situation with literature.
War is as futile as fighting windmills. There is little logic and humongous destruction. As humanity continues to fade away with time, its reflection in terms of art and literature is deeply affected. The war in Ukraine, for instance, has wiped out major art galleries and museums which once housed the work of celebrated creators.
Thanks to the internet, work by eminent native authors and creators is accessible today.
If you have more read, listen or watch recommendations, feel free to share them with the community as a post.
Freebie of the week:
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Read this Book:
The President’s Last Love- Andrey Kurkov
The book is a political satire that follows events in Russia and Ukraine during and after the crumbling of the Soviet Union.
Read this Article:
The stories that reveal the soul of Ukraine
A book critic follows stories that reveal the problematic state of affairs in Ukraine.
Listen to this Podcast:
How war threatens Ukraine’s art and architecture
In this podcast, host Kiernan speaks with writer Evan Rail about Ukrainians attempting to protect and preserve their culture as the war poses a major threat to priceless art and architecture.
Watch this Video:
Words and War: Ukrainian Writers Reflect on A Moment of Crisis | by PEN America | Time: 58:11
In this video, US diplomat and academic Micheal McFaul speak to eminent authors of Ukraine, as they reflect on the horrors of war.
Watch this Movie:
Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight For Freedom | Feature Film by Netflix | Time: 1:37:49
This Netflix documentary follows the 2013-14 Revolution of Dignity in Kyiv via historic footage and testimonies of twenty-four protestors.
Lessons To Pin - Why we sleep by Matthew Walker
Sharing 5 lessons from ‘Book of the week’ — Why we sleep by Matthew Walker
The author, a neuroscientist and sleep researcher teach us about the science of sleep, why we even need it, and how one can unlock its potential to benefit our daily life.
Throughout developed nations, most adults currently sleep in a monophasic pattern—that is, we try to take a long, single bout of slumber at night, the average duration of which is now less than seven hours. Visit cultures that are untouched by electricity and you often see something rather different. Hunter-gatherer tribes, such as the Gabra in northern Kenya or the San people in the Kalahari Desert, whose way of life has changed little over the past thousands of years, sleep in a biphasic pattern. Both these groups take a similarly longer sleep period at night (seven to eight hours of time in bed, achieving about seven hours of sleep), followed by a thirty- to sixty-minute nap in the afternoon.
Why did evolution decide to outlaw muscle activity during REM sleep? Because by eliminating muscle activity you are prevented from acting out your dream experience.
An older adult simply needs less sleep is a myth. Older adults appear to need just as much sleep as they do in midlife but are simply less able to generate that (still necessary) sleep.
No matter what you may have heard or read in the popular media, there is no scientific evidence we have suggesting that a drug, a device, or any amount of psychological willpower can replace sleep. Power naps may momentarily increase basic concentration under conditions of sleep deprivation, as can caffeine up to a certain dose. Neither naps nor caffeine can salvage more complex functions of the brain, including learning, memory, emotional stability, complex reasoning, or decision-making.
A bedroom temperature of around 65 degrees Fahrenheit (18.3°C) is ideal for the sleep of most people, assuming standard bedding and clothing.
Lessons from the previous week’s book: Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
Happening on Merrative
An update on our initiatives to help you enjoy literary experiences.
Jobs opportunities in the publishing space
Here are this week’s 45 job opportunities and internships in freelance writing, editing, copywriting, etc.
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