The idea for this book came about when the authors met in Edinburgh in autumn 2022, about six months after the start of Russia's large-scale invasion of Ukraine. Nadiia was a refugee from Kyiv. She had collected stories from other refugees in which they recounted how they and their families had reacted to the shock of the invasion. She translated them into English and wanted to draw the attention of English-speaking people to the events in Ukraine. Soon after, she and Jenny had set up a simple website and posted the stories online. When news of the atrocities committed against Ukrainian prisoners of war appeared in the Ukrainian media, they added some of these stories, which were based on media interviews after the prisoner exchange and had largely gone unreported outside Ukraine. These stories make up the bulk of this book. The focus is on individuals refugee families, prisoners of war and civilians in Russian captivity, as well as people living in Russian-occupied territories. Not only their suffering and the cruelty of their Russian jailers and others, but also the Ukrainians' unshakeable belief in their country, their patriotism and their determination that Ukraine can and will win this terrible war against a cunning, vicious and ruthless enemy. The authors hope that readers will recognise what happens when democracy tolerates and plays with dictatorship and tyranny.
