Italian to English Art/Literary Poetry & Literature

From an article about the death of author Luigi Meneghello, from Veneto. This passage is about his childhood, characterized by poverty and cold:

E' un Veneto coi geloni alle mani e ai piedi, che lavora senza sosta ma ha sempre voglia di sorridere e con una risata butta alle spalle, stenti e umiliazioni.

I think I get the gist of this phrase, but I don't know how it should go in English.