marimarifer's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
fast-paced
5.0
tiffany_aching99's review against another edition
5.0
I only have 25 pages left and I am on 175. I want this all to end for Masha, but not for me. Reading this comes at a funny but influential time. Three weeks before I start university. Two weeks ago Masha was banned from flying out of Russia to attend the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. You know what she did? She drove 600 miles to Lithuania via Belarus so she could catch a flight that way. Lithuania is in the European Union, and Belarus doesn't have too tight security. She was determined not to let her fans down. Determined not to let Putin win. The Russian Revolution is happening, right now. She cannot be contained, will always be free. But now she is afraid about what will happen next when she goes home. After learning all this, I am filled with enamour for Masha. And I know I am ridiculously lucky to have spoken to her after the gig in Leeds, even in a brief few moments.
As I read Riot Days, I fear for Masha's safety. I only wish she would stay in the UK. But something about her never left the Russian prisons. She is strong but vulnerable, filled with compassion for others and the spirit of a protester. No matter what happens, she keeps on fighting for human rights and her humanity only grows deeper. She speaks for those who do not have a voice, who have had it taken away or stay silent, living a life in fear. She knows Russia needs her. She made her choice a long time ago. So she will be back. Her bravery is to be reckoned with. In Berezniki she was 1 in 1000, not including all those women who came to the prison before her and were released or fallen, living lives of deprivation and suffering. Always prisoners. Masha is a synonym of activist in my book. To Back Down an Inch is to Give Up a Mile.
If I could buy 100 copies of a book to distribute to friends, family, libraries... Leave around train stations... On buses... Hide them in the city to be found by strangers... This is book would be it. In future I could be in that position. If the copy of Riot Days in your hand was found by you in the second-class compartment when boarding the train from Manchester to Liverpool, and you are reading this review now... That was probably me. And I boarded at Leeds. I could even be sat opposite you right now. Hi 👋
Don't be tempted to return this book, the gift must move.
Some complain about the format of Riot Days and how it is fragmented. I wonder how you would feel, having only your mother's watch to separate one hour from another. This book is a work of art. It is poetic, funny and heart-wrenching. I will never be able to look at pasta the same way again. This book is like a play or screenplay, so if you aren't fortunate enough to have seen it, as reenacted by balaclava clad Pussy Riot in Russian, live, with music for dramatic effect and film as a visual backdrop, it may not come to life for you. Just as a magnificent work of Shakespeare wouldn't. This book is essentially the English subtitles to a story that everyone needs to know, because "what happened in Russia - to me - could happen to anyone anywhere". Reading this book, I smile, remembering one of the most inspiring nights of my life. Anyone can be Pussy Riot.
No more pages. The book is finished now, but the story keeps going on.
Pussy Riot are still touring the UK as we speak. If you only catch one show this, or any year, may it be a Pussy Riot gig.
If you only read one book this, or any year, may it be Riot Days.
We are Pussy Riot.
As I read Riot Days, I fear for Masha's safety. I only wish she would stay in the UK. But something about her never left the Russian prisons. She is strong but vulnerable, filled with compassion for others and the spirit of a protester. No matter what happens, she keeps on fighting for human rights and her humanity only grows deeper. She speaks for those who do not have a voice, who have had it taken away or stay silent, living a life in fear. She knows Russia needs her. She made her choice a long time ago. So she will be back. Her bravery is to be reckoned with. In Berezniki she was 1 in 1000, not including all those women who came to the prison before her and were released or fallen, living lives of deprivation and suffering. Always prisoners. Masha is a synonym of activist in my book. To Back Down an Inch is to Give Up a Mile.
If I could buy 100 copies of a book to distribute to friends, family, libraries... Leave around train stations... On buses... Hide them in the city to be found by strangers... This is book would be it. In future I could be in that position. If the copy of Riot Days in your hand was found by you in the second-class compartment when boarding the train from Manchester to Liverpool, and you are reading this review now... That was probably me. And I boarded at Leeds. I could even be sat opposite you right now. Hi 👋
Don't be tempted to return this book, the gift must move.
Some complain about the format of Riot Days and how it is fragmented. I wonder how you would feel, having only your mother's watch to separate one hour from another. This book is a work of art. It is poetic, funny and heart-wrenching. I will never be able to look at pasta the same way again. This book is like a play or screenplay, so if you aren't fortunate enough to have seen it, as reenacted by balaclava clad Pussy Riot in Russian, live, with music for dramatic effect and film as a visual backdrop, it may not come to life for you. Just as a magnificent work of Shakespeare wouldn't. This book is essentially the English subtitles to a story that everyone needs to know, because "what happened in Russia - to me - could happen to anyone anywhere". Reading this book, I smile, remembering one of the most inspiring nights of my life. Anyone can be Pussy Riot.
No more pages. The book is finished now, but the story keeps going on.
Pussy Riot are still touring the UK as we speak. If you only catch one show this, or any year, may it be a Pussy Riot gig.
If you only read one book this, or any year, may it be Riot Days.
We are Pussy Riot.
kindledspiritsbooks's review against another edition
3.0
I've had this book sitting on my Kindle for a while but the recent Russian invasion of Ukraine made reading this memoir of rebellion against Russian state tyranny feel urgent. Maria Alyokhina is a member of Pussy Riot, a radical Russian activist collective known for its eye-catching protests against Vladimir Putin's authoritariansim. Her memoir of her time spent in a Russian penal colony is a mix of stream of consciousness, poetry, political theory and 'you have to laugh or you'll cry' insight into the relentless and petty cruelty and unfairness of the Russian penal system. Ultimately this is a story of a woman who endured the unendurable and not only emerged with her spirit intact, but also won rights for her fellow prisoners. A brutal and inspiring read for bleak times.
georgia_hadj's review against another edition
5.0
Σοκαριστικό. Σε κάνει να διερωτάσαι αν πραγματικά έχουμε δημοκρατία ή όχι. Και το πιο τραγικό είναι πως συνέβησαν πριν 11 χρόνια.
jillwerbisky's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
medium-paced
ronanmcd's review against another edition
5.0
Brave, forthright and defiant. I've no idea and no frame of reference whether all in here is absolute truth, but I'd imagine it is. Ms Alyokhina is so awe-inspiring in ways i could never be so brave to follow.
Having read other diaries where the writer was targeting an audience (World War 2 commanders, revolutionaries' travails & travels, politicians' justifications) with a definite aim in mind, I question a book where the writers' aims are pure as driven snow. But this didn't feel like that. It's raw and engrossing. It's terrifying and invigorating. It makes you want to scream with frustration or defiance.
Not that any of us ever would in Russia.
Having read other diaries where the writer was targeting an audience (World War 2 commanders, revolutionaries' travails & travels, politicians' justifications) with a definite aim in mind, I question a book where the writers' aims are pure as driven snow. But this didn't feel like that. It's raw and engrossing. It's terrifying and invigorating. It makes you want to scream with frustration or defiance.
Not that any of us ever would in Russia.
chloemills's review against another edition
3.0
In 2012 a group calling themselves Pussy Riot staged a protest ,called 'Punk Prayer', against Putin and the Russian government. Following their protest the women were forced to go on the run from the law. Maria, called Masha in the memoir, is one member who gets caught and sent to prison for her 'crimes', this is her story.
The story of Pussy Riot hit headlines worldwide, women put in prison simply for protesting. Going into this memoir I didn't know what to expect, I'd followed the story with interest but wondered what had happened to the women. This memoir explores the reasons behind the protest and what many people forget, the humans who lived it.
The book is set out in a fragmented style, almost as if it were a diary. That said it can make it incredibly hard to read. There were times when the book jumps between time frames and situations, which caused a lot of confusion while reading and meant that I often lost concentration while reading. I also think there was an issue with the translation, some things didn't come across clearly, leaving me to guess what the author meant.
This is an important book to read, there is a lot we don't know a lot about what happens to political prisoners. With Masha's determination and status within her prisons she was able to make some changes to the way women were treated in prison. She was able to give them some basic human rights, many of which they are denied.
It is a fascinating look at the reasons behind the movement, however, there were points where I felt too distant from Masha, I didn't feel like I knew her as a person. She mentions a son at the beginning but he's hardly mentioned for the rest of the book, I wanted to know more about her life, her family and who she was outside Pussy Riot.
I gave Riot Days 3 stars. While I enjoyed it and thought that it was an interesting look at the life of a political prisoner and what lead her there. That said, there were issues with the way translations came across and the format made it incredibly difficult to follow.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this review copy.
The story of Pussy Riot hit headlines worldwide, women put in prison simply for protesting. Going into this memoir I didn't know what to expect, I'd followed the story with interest but wondered what had happened to the women. This memoir explores the reasons behind the protest and what many people forget, the humans who lived it.
The book is set out in a fragmented style, almost as if it were a diary. That said it can make it incredibly hard to read. There were times when the book jumps between time frames and situations, which caused a lot of confusion while reading and meant that I often lost concentration while reading. I also think there was an issue with the translation, some things didn't come across clearly, leaving me to guess what the author meant.
This is an important book to read, there is a lot we don't know a lot about what happens to political prisoners. With Masha's determination and status within her prisons she was able to make some changes to the way women were treated in prison. She was able to give them some basic human rights, many of which they are denied.
It is a fascinating look at the reasons behind the movement, however, there were points where I felt too distant from Masha, I didn't feel like I knew her as a person. She mentions a son at the beginning but he's hardly mentioned for the rest of the book, I wanted to know more about her life, her family and who she was outside Pussy Riot.
I gave Riot Days 3 stars. While I enjoyed it and thought that it was an interesting look at the life of a political prisoner and what lead her there. That said, there were issues with the way translations came across and the format made it incredibly difficult to follow.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this review copy.