Ivan Astashin. Journey through Places of Deprivation

Ivan Astashin is a political prisoner, the first defendant in a long chain of cases fabricated by the security services and classified as terrorism. In 2009, Ivan and his comrades participated in an anti-FSB protest on "Chekist Day"—an arson attack on the FSB department for Moscow's Southwestern District. By court order, Ivan served nine years and nine months in prison, most of which was spent in maximum-security camps in the Krasnoyarsk Territory.

"Journey" is a crucial document of the era, bearing witness to contemporary Russian prison reality, which in many ways serves as a manifestation of the repressive structure of life in Russia. Ivan carefully examines and documents prison life, describing the diverse forms of prison life in a wide variety of living conditions, which he personally observed and experienced.

Much of the book speaks of the constant recurrence of prison violence, which permeates every level of the penal system. Yet, beneath all the horrors of prison life, Ivan's text foregrounds a powerful, life-affirming message: words about brotherhood and mutual aid, solidarity among prisoners and the potential for resistance to violence, the ability to find joy in simple things, and the ability to be free, even if only for a short time, in the unfree prison world.