How to Survive Authoritarianism

In Russia, tyranny has been the law of the land for generations. Over the years, a vernacular of double-speak emerged, one that helped ordinary people make sense of how illiberalism takes shape and makes itself felt in daily life. It allowed them to talk about authoritarianism and to subvert it—with a healthy dose of humour and irony along the way. In this edifying yet light-hearted glossary, two exiled dissidents share one hundred Russian idioms and turns of phrase, from “apparatchik”