During my time in the camps, I had got to know the enemies of the human race quite well: they respect the big fist and nothing else; the harder you slug them, the safer you will be.

When you're cold, don't expect sympathy from someone who's warm.

In our village, folks say God crumbles up the old moon into stars.

I have always had that inner drive, since my birth. And I have always devoted myself gladly to work - to work and to the struggle.

I have always insisted on the need for local self-government for Russia, but I never opposed this model to Western democracy. On the contrary, I have tried to convince my fellow citizens by citing the examples of highly effective local self-government systems in Switzerland and New England, both of which I saw first-hand.

For us in Russia, communism is a dead dog, while, for many people in the West, it is still a living lion.

I can say without affectation that I belong to the Russian convict world no less than I do to Russian literature. I got my education there, and it will last forever.