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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
challenging
informative
fast-paced
I’ve listened to countless interviews with Anne Applebaum over the years and have grown to truly value her perspective. She’s sharp, balanced, deeply researched, and unflinching—and I expected her writing to be the same. When I saw that my local library had several of her books, I grabbed Autocracy, Inc., one of her newer releases. And as expected, Applebaum did not disappoint.
We’re living in an era where the worst actors on the world stage have studied the past, learned each other’s playbooks, and linked arms across borders to suppress liberty and democracy. In Autocracy, Inc., Applebaum lays it all out—methodically, clearly, and with devastating precision. This isn’t a book of vague warnings. It’s a deeply sourced, razor-sharp account of how authoritarian leaders—dictators, oligarchs, monarchs, corporate elites, and corrupt presidents—collaborate in the shadows to protect their wealth, dodge consequences, and tighten their grip on power.
These autocrats aren’t working in isolation. Applebaum reveals how they learn from one another, offer each other safe havens, manipulate global institutions, and build networks of influence that operate well outside the lanes of law the rest of us are expected to follow. It's a club with no loyalty to country—just to control.
Applebaum doesn’t pull punches or sugarcoat the stakes. This isn’t a feel-good read, nor should it be. It’s an urgent dismantling of the myth that authoritarianism is confined to the past or to far-off places. She makes it painfully clear: this is happening now, and it’s closer to home than most want to admit.
What impressed me most is that she doesn’t leave the reader in despair. Applebaum offers direction—what vigilance looks like, where resistance can begin, and why truth-telling and international solidarity still matter. It’s not just a diagnosis; it’s a call to awareness and action.
If you want to understand the shape of modern tyranny, both abroad and at home, this book is essential. Read it soon. Then pass it on. The autocrats are counting on our ignorance—and Autocracy, Inc. tears away their curtain.
We’re living in an era where the worst actors on the world stage have studied the past, learned each other’s playbooks, and linked arms across borders to suppress liberty and democracy. In Autocracy, Inc., Applebaum lays it all out—methodically, clearly, and with devastating precision. This isn’t a book of vague warnings. It’s a deeply sourced, razor-sharp account of how authoritarian leaders—dictators, oligarchs, monarchs, corporate elites, and corrupt presidents—collaborate in the shadows to protect their wealth, dodge consequences, and tighten their grip on power.
These autocrats aren’t working in isolation. Applebaum reveals how they learn from one another, offer each other safe havens, manipulate global institutions, and build networks of influence that operate well outside the lanes of law the rest of us are expected to follow. It's a club with no loyalty to country—just to control.
Applebaum doesn’t pull punches or sugarcoat the stakes. This isn’t a feel-good read, nor should it be. It’s an urgent dismantling of the myth that authoritarianism is confined to the past or to far-off places. She makes it painfully clear: this is happening now, and it’s closer to home than most want to admit.
What impressed me most is that she doesn’t leave the reader in despair. Applebaum offers direction—what vigilance looks like, where resistance can begin, and why truth-telling and international solidarity still matter. It’s not just a diagnosis; it’s a call to awareness and action.
If you want to understand the shape of modern tyranny, both abroad and at home, this book is essential. Read it soon. Then pass it on. The autocrats are counting on our ignorance—and Autocracy, Inc. tears away their curtain.
challenging
dark
informative
tense
fast-paced
informative
sad
fast-paced
Probably a good primer on autocracies in the modern day for someone without much prior knowledge.
I didn't check the references so I'm not sure how reliable the sources are, but it was a good and easy read.
I didn't check the references so I'm not sure how reliable the sources are, but it was a good and easy read.
informative
medium-paced
informative
medium-paced
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
informative
medium-paced
dark
informative
fast-paced
informative
slow-paced