Never Alone: Prison, Politics, and My People

In this inspirational account, Soviet dissident Sharansky (Defending Identity) chronicles his life story and offers his perspective on the evolving relationship between the state of Israel and the Jewish people. In the book’s strongest sections, Sharansky describes growing up in Ukraine under Stalinist rule, where “being outed as Jewish was like being diagnosed with some debilitating disease.” He learned the art of “doublethink,” publicly professing allegiance to the regime while harboring private doubts, and fully embraced his Jewish heritage after Israel’s victory in the Six-Day War. In 1973, Soviet authorities denied his request to emigrate to Israel. He joined the “Refusenik” and democratic dissident movements, was surveilled and arrested by the KGB on trumped-up treason charges, and served nine years in the gulag before international outcry led to his release. Arriving in Israel in 1986 at age 38, Sharansky cofounded a new Russian immigrants’ political party and became head of the Jewish Agency for Israel. He forcefully articulates his center-right political views, including opposition to the Oslo peace accords, and defends Trump administration policies on Israel while condemning the president’s “moral dithering” after a neo-Nazi rally in Charlottesville, Va. The result is a worthy introduction to the life and work of one of the world’s most famous political prisoners. (Sept.)