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How to Slay a Dragon

Building a New Russia After Putin
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( 77 ratings, 15 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
In How to Slay a Dragon by Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the author delves into his personal experiences and offers insights on combating authoritarian regimes and corruption. Through anecdotes and reflections from his own political journey, Khodorkovsky discusses the challenges faced by reformers and the strategies needed to promote democracy and justice. The book paints a vivid picture of power dynamics and the quest for societal change.
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Format: Hardback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this exploration of politics and current affairs if you're interested in understanding the challenges of confronting and overcoming authoritarian regimes. It offers fascinating insights and personal reflections from someone who has directly faced these formidable forces, providing both a captivating narrative and a thoughtful examination of political courage and resistance.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Mikhail Khodorkovsky is one of the most astute observers of today’s Russia. Imprisoned for a decade in Russia’s prisons on politically motivated charges, he knows all too well the best and the worst of his country. He now lives in exile and, like many Russians who live abroad, he longs for the day when he can return to a free and democratic Russia.

This book is Khodorkovsky’s account of what is happening in Russia today and what could happen in the future. Putin will not last forever: sooner or later, there will be a post-Putin era. But Russia’s history has been deeply shaped by an autocratic trap: a revolution against an autocracy has produced another autocracy, followed by another revolution and another autocracy, and so on. If Russia is to find its place as a constructive partner in a global community of civilised nations, then it has to escape this vicious cycle.

How to Slay a Dragon is Khodorkovsky’s account of his own journey and of how the vicious cycle of Russian history can be broken. He charts a pathway towards a parliamentary federal republic which would enable Russia to become a free and democratic society, living in peace and without dragons.

Also available as an audiobook.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

How to Slay a Dragon is presented as a rigorous and bold blueprint for regime change, particularly in Russia, drawing positive attention for its timely analysis and hopeful vision for the future from reviewers at The Sunday Times and Sydney Morning Herald.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781509561056

Publisher: John Wiley and Sons Ltd

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 15 September 2023

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Polity Press

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 28.0mm

Width: 145.0mm

Height: 218.0mm

Weight: 476g

Pages: 240

About the Author

Mikhail Khodorkovsky is Russia’s most famous living dissident in exile. Once regarded as Russia’s richest man, he criticised endemic corruption at a televised meeting with President Putin in early 2003, was arrested later that year and sentenced to fourteen years in prison. Eventually released in December 2013 and forced into exile, he now lives in London. He established the Open Russia Foundation in 2001 with the aim of building and strengthening civil society in Russia, and he relaunched the Open Russia movement in September 2014. As the leader of the Russian opposition in exile, Khodorkovsky works to promote political reform in Russia and advocates an alternative vision for his country’s future.

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