p. 92,
Anatoly Korolyov
: Anatoly Korolyov (1942–91), a popular singer in the Soviet Union.
p. 93,
do widzenia
: “Goodbye” (Polish).
p. 105,
Kobzon… Tsvetaeva
: Iosif Kobzon (1937–), Russian crooner; Marina Tsvetaeva (1892–1941), one of the best-known lyrical poets of twentieth-century Russia.
p. 108,
Baba Yaga
: A famous character in Russian fairy tales, an evil witch who lives in a hut on chicken legs.
p. 110,
Viscount de Bragelonne
:
The Viscount of Bragelonne
(1847–50) is a novel by Alexandre Dumas
père
(1802–70).
p. 111,
I accede, like Shepilov
: In the plot to oust Khrushchev in 1957, Dmitri Shepilov (1905–95), a secretary of the Central Committee, sided with the anti-Khrushchev faction led by Molotov, Malenkov, Kaganovich, Pervukhin and Saburov, who were swiftly defeated and lost all political influence and posts.
p. 112,
Kursk Magnetic Anomaly
: A region in central Russia rich in iron ore.
p. 113,
Karatsupa
: Nikita Karatsupa (1910–94) was a renowned border guard in the Soviet Union, who was said to have captured countless spies and smugglers, worked extreme hours and was decorated with the Order of Lenin, the highest decoration in the USSR.
p. 116,
Article 92, without an instrument
: Presumably a reference to the non-violent theft of state property.
p. 116,
Finita la commedia
: “The comedy is over” (Italian).
p. 117,
Ogonyok magazine
: A popular illustrated political and social magazine.
p. 117,
Julius Fučík
: Julius Fučík (1872–1916) was a Czech composer of predominantly military and patriotic marches.
p. 118,
the academic Sakharov
: Andrei Sakharov (1921–89), nuclear physicist who contributed significantly to the development of the Soviet hydrogen bomb, who later became an outspoken dissident and human-rights activist.
p. 119,
Baratynsky
: Yevgeny Baratynsky (1800–44) was a Russian poet and contemporary of Pushkin.
p. 124,
the Tales of Ivan Belkin
: A collection of five short stories by Pushkin, published in 1831.
p. 126,
Dzerzhinsky
: Felix Dzerzhinsky (1877–1926), or “Iron Felix”, established the notorious Soviet secret police, the Cheka, shortly after the October Revolution of 1917.
p. 127,
Anton Makarenko
: Makarenko (1888–1939) was a Soviet educator and the founder of orphanages for children displaced by the Russian Civil War.
p. 128,
samizdat
…
Znamya magazine
: The term samizdat, derived from the Russian for “self-publishing”, refers to the clandestine publication of literature not permitted by the authorities.
Znamya
is a literary periodical.
p. 132,
HIAS
: The Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, a charity established in 1881 to assist Jews who were forced to emigrate from Russia.
p. 133,
Carl Proffer
: Professor of Russian at the University of Michigan, Carl Proffer (1938–84) co-founded the publishing house Ardis, which specialized in Russian literature not tolerated by the Soviet authorities, both in translation and in the original.
p. 134,
Gladilin
: Anatoly Gladilin (1935–), Russian writer who defected in the 1970s from Russia to live in Paris.
p. 135,
Alberto Moravia
: Alberto Moravia (1907–90), Italian writer and journalist.
The translator wishes to thank the following:
Amy Flanagan, for finding the time in her Blackberry-dominated life to correct my grammar. Alex Billington, for adding polish to the text. Beth Knobel and Marti Whelan, for the encouragement. Facebook friends, for the support and humour. Kirill Belyaninov, for his encyclopedic knowledge of Soviet prison jargon. Andrey Aryev for his intellectual generosity. My father, for leaving behind an amazing gift that allows us to continue a dialogue.
And my mother, who was right.