Sweeping censorship hit Russia\u2019s book industry soon after the Kremlin launched its full-scale war against Ukraine. Fearing state persecution, publishers began blacking out entire pages \u2014 scrubbing any hints about the war or\u00a0parallels with the current political situation, erasing scenes of\u00a0queer relationships, and cutting out depictions of\u00a0life in\u00a0exile. It\u00a0wasn\u2019t just certain themes that were banned but authors themselves: books by\u00a0writers and intellectuals labeled \u201cforeign agents\u201d or\u00a0\u201cextremists\u201d for their anti-war stance vanished from store shelves.<\/p>\n
Meduza asked nine artists to\u00a0reflect on\u00a0the phenomenon of\u00a0publisher self-censorship in\u00a0wartime Russia.<\/p>\n
Michael Cunningham. Day<\/p>\n
Russian translation published by\u00a0\u0410\u0421\u0422, Corpus, 2025<\/p>\n
Day is\u00a0the latest novel by\u00a0Michael Cunningham, one of\u00a0the leading American writers of\u00a0his generation and the Pulitzer Prize\u2013winning author of\u00a0The Hours. In\u00a0Day, Cunningham explores how the coronavirus pandemic upended the daily life of\u00a0a\u00a0Brooklyn family, exposed rifts in\u00a0their relationships, and pushed them to\u00a0rethink what it\u00a0means to\u00a0take care of\u00a0one another.<\/p>\n
In\u00a0the Russian edition, passages dealing with homosexuality \u2014 a\u00a0central theme in\u00a0Cunningham\u2019s work \u2014 were censored. Several pages cut material from the romantic storyline involving the characters Robbie, Adam, and Oliver. In\u00a0the original, these scenes describe how, in\u00a0conditions of\u00a0isolation, the characters seek support and new forms of\u00a0connection through emotional and physical intimacy.<\/p>\n
Artist Leto:<\/p>\n
All those black marks in\u00a0books are obstacles the reader encounters. Publishers, too, are forced to\u00a0maneuver around censorship. The whole process of\u00a0making a\u00a0book and engaging with it\u00a0turns into a\u00a0kind of\u00a0game, where you have to\u00a0twist and dodge just to\u00a0survive. That\u2019s how my\u00a0series Pendulum, Classics, and Tetris came about.<\/p>\n
Keith Recker. Deep Color: The Shades That Shape Our Souls<\/p>\n
Russian translation published by\u00a0Bombora, 2025<\/p>\n
Keith Recker is\u00a0an\u00a0American designer and scholar of\u00a0visual culture. In\u00a0Deep Color, he\u00a0explores the cultural and social meanings of\u00a0various hues. Pink, purple, and blue, in\u00a0his telling, are bound up\u00a0with art history, politics, mass movements, and cultural turning points \u2014 from ancient poetry and myth to\u00a0denim advertising and feminist campaigns of\u00a0the late 20th century. These very connections \u2014 between color and politics, the body, and struggles for rights \u2014 were censored in\u00a0the Russian edition.<\/p>\n
Entire sections are now blacked out, including pages on\u00a0the pink triangles once used by\u00a0the Nazis to\u00a0mark homosexuals, a\u00a0symbol that by\u00a0the late 20th century had been reclaimed by\u00a0the equality movement. Recker\u2019s discussion of\u00a0pink as\u00a0the color of\u00a0public campaigns against breast cancer is\u00a0also missing. In\u00a0the chapter on\u00a0purple, readers cannot see the passages about its place in\u00a0the ancient tradition of\u00a0homoerotic poetry, or\u00a0about its role in\u00a020th-century feminist and queer movements.<\/p>\n
Maria Stepanova. The Disappearing Act <\/p>\n
Novoe Izdatelstvo, 2024<\/p>\n
Maria Stepanova is\u00a0a\u00a0poet, essayist, and author of\u00a0In\u00a0Memory of\u00a0Memory, which was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize. Her 2024 novel The Disappearing Act tells the story of\u00a0an\u00a0an\u00a0\u00e9migr\u00e9 writer named M. who watches from abroad as\u00a0her homeland wages war on\u00a0a\u00a0neighboring country. Stepanova deliberately avoids naming Russia or\u00a0Ukraine: her warring sides are simply \u201cthe one that attacked\u201d and \u201cthe one that was attacked.\u201d In\u00a0the novel, the war becomes the backdrop for reflections on\u00a0language, memory, and personal fate.<\/p>\n
In\u00a0the edition of\u00a0The Disappearing Act available in\u00a0Russian bookstores, censors removed lines suggesting that the heroine had left Russia, along with passages explaining why her neighbors in\u00a0her new country view her with suspicion.<\/p>\n
Artist Elena Novikova:<\/p>\n
In\u00a0the print edition of\u00a0Maria Stepanova\u2019s The Disappearing Act, there\u2019s a\u00a0censored paragraph: black bars blot out the text but leave fragments of\u00a0letters hanging \u2014 a\u00a0diacritic over an\u00a0\u0439, the tails of\u00a0a\u00a0\u0443 and a\u00a0\u0431. Yet in\u00a0the narrative, emigration, the loss of\u00a0trust in\u00a0one\u2019s native language, and watching the war from afar lay bare the fragility of\u00a0expression itself. What matters to\u00a0me\u00a0is\u00a0not illustrating the plot, but extending its work in\u00a0images: showing how words disappear and fragment; how the landscape flickering before the eyes of\u00a0someone always on\u00a0the move slips out of\u00a0focus; how attention lingers on\u00a0those broken-off letters and diacritical marks. Censorship turns reading into deciphering, and vision into the labor of\u00a0restoring what\u2019s been erased.<\/p>\n
Max Falk. Shattered<\/p>\n
Eksmo, 2022<\/p>\n
The earliest works by\u00a0writer and playwright Max Falk appeared on\u00a0Ficbook and Patreon. In\u00a0October 2022, Falk published his first full-length novel, Shattered. The book gained popularity on\u00a0Ficbook before being released in\u00a0print as\u00a0part of\u00a0Eksmo\u2019s LikeBook series. He\u00a0later published a sequel, 52 Hz.<\/p>\n
After Eksmo carried out a\u00a0\u201clinguistic review,\u201d about three percent of\u00a0the text of\u00a0Shattered was removed. The publisher deleted entire scenes of\u00a0physical and emotional intimacy between two young men: a\u00a0first sexual experience, detailed descriptions of\u00a0sex, and acknowledgement and discussion of\u00a0sexual identity. Eksmo explained the decision as\u00a0a\u00a0matter of\u00a0complying with Russia\u2019s law banning so-called \u201cpropaganda of\u00a0nontraditional sexual relations.\u201d In\u00a0addition, information about the book was deleted from Eksmo\u2019s website.<\/p>\n
Artist Volya:<\/p>\n
I\u00a0imagined the extremes to\u00a0which censorship might\u00a0go. That\u2019s how I\u00a0came up\u00a0with a\u00a0dystopia about a\u00a0state ruled by\u00a0the \u201cMinistry of\u00a0Especially Dangerous Books.\u201d It\u00a0sends out \u201creading mentors\u201d to\u00a0monitor readers and eventually begins censoring every symbolic system in\u00a0public space, from road markings to\u00a0building signs.<\/p>\n
Skye Cleary. How to\u00a0Be\u00a0Authentic: Simone de\u00a0Beauvoir and the Quest for Fulfillment<\/p>\n
Russian translation published by\u00a0Alpina Non-Fiction, 2025<\/p>\n
In\u00a0the Russian edition of\u00a0this book about one of\u00a0feminism\u2019s most important figures, dozens of\u00a0paragraphs are blacked\u00a0out. Removed are discussions of\u00a0the fluidity of\u00a0gender categories and the right to\u00a0define oneself outside the rigid male-female binary. Also censored are passages on\u00a0contraception and abortion, critiques of\u00a0biological reductionism and social pressure on\u00a0women, details of\u00a0Simone de\u00a0Beauvoir\u2019s intimate life and her relationships with women, as\u00a0well as\u00a0reflections on\u00a0non-monogamous relationships. Even the footnotes hide citations to\u00a0quotes that touch on\u00a0gender identity.<\/p>\n
The book\u2019s author is\u00a0Australian philosopher Skye Cleary, a\u00a0specialist in\u00a0existentialism and a\u00a0popularizer of\u00a0Simone de\u00a0Beauvoir\u2019s ideas. In\u00a0How to\u00a0Be\u00a0Authentic, she analyzes de\u00a0Beauvoir\u2019s philosophical texts through the lens of\u00a0her biography and the lives of\u00a0other women, showing how the thinker\u2019s ideas can help make sense of\u00a0identity, freedom, and equality. With the censored passages missing, parts of\u00a0the text become illogical and disjointed.<\/p>\n
Artist Natalia Nikolaeva:<\/p>\n
When you see those black bars and know there\u2019s text behind them, you feel a\u00a0powerful urge to\u00a0decipher it\u00a0by\u00a0any means. I\u00a0tried using a\u00a0macro lens, hoping to\u00a0make out the outlines of\u00a0the letters. But no\u00a0text emerged \u2014 instead, I\u00a0ended up\u00a0with abstract images of\u00a0paper and ink textures.<\/p>\n
Natalia Klyuchareva. Diary of\u00a0the End of\u00a0the World<\/p>\n
Ivan Limbakh Publishing House, 2024<\/p>\n
Natalia Klyuchareva, author of\u00a0the novels A\u00a0Train Named Russia and The Girl with Three Passports, writes about everyday life in\u00a0rural areas and about people struggling with isolation who seek support in\u00a0close relationships. Her novel Diary of\u00a0the End of\u00a0the World is\u00a0composed of\u00a0fragmentary notes about encounters, conversations, and chance episodes that together convey an\u00a0anxious sense of\u00a0an\u00a0era coming to\u00a0an\u00a0end. \u201cLife seems to\u00a0pass me\u00a0by. The trams are still running. The everyday routine of\u00a0Brest. I\u00a0think: is\u00a0this really life? But in\u00a0fact, there is\u00a0no\u00a0future at\u00a0all\u2026\u201d reflects the heroine. The entire novel carries this fatalistic tone.<\/p>\n
The censors cut just two words from Diary of\u00a0the End of\u00a0the World: \u201cwar\u201d and \u201cPutin.\u201d Black bars hiding them stretch across dozens of\u00a0pages.<\/p>\n
Mark Manson. Everything Is\u00a0Fucked: A\u00a0Book About Hope<\/p>\n
Russian translation published by\u00a0Alpina Publisher, 2024<\/p>\n
Mark Manson\u2019s first book, The Subtle Art of\u00a0Not Giving a\u00a0Fuck, a\u00a0critique of\u00a0the cult of\u00a0success and modern society\u2019s obsession with productivity, became an\u00a0international bestseller and was hugely popular in\u00a0Russia in\u00a0the mid- to\u00a0late 2010s.<\/p>\n
Everything Is\u00a0Fucked: A\u00a0Book About Hope was first published in\u00a0Russian in\u00a02019, and its Russian-language audiobook quickly shot to\u00a0the top of\u00a0the Bookmate charts. In\u00a0it, Manson asks why global anxiety has peaked precisely at\u00a0a\u00a0moment when our lives are more comfortable and secure than ever before. He\u00a0writes about a\u00a0crisis of\u00a0values, challenges philosophers, questions religious dogmas, tells stories from pop culture, and concludes that the cult of\u00a0positive thinking doesn\u2019t save people but instead harms them, creating unhealthy illusions. Instead, he\u00a0argues that the meaning of\u00a0life should be\u00a0sought in\u00a0truth, honesty, and responsibility \u2014 not in\u00a0the endless chase for dopamine.<\/p>\n
In\u00a0the 2024 Russian print edition of\u00a0Everything Is\u00a0Fucked, censors blacked out Manson\u2019s discussions of\u00a0religion, drugs, and sexuality, along with political commentary and profanity.<\/p>\n
Roberto Carnero. Pasolini: \u00adDying for Ideas<\/p>\n
Russian translation published by\u00a0AST, 2024 <\/p>\n
Roberto Carnero is\u00a0an\u00a0Italian literary scholar, associate professor of\u00a0modern Italian literature at\u00a0the University of\u00a0Bologna, and a\u00a0researcher of\u00a020th-century literature and film. He\u00a0is\u00a0also a\u00a0contributor of\u00a0critical essays to\u00a0Italian publications. One of\u00a0his major works is\u00a0Pasolini: Dying for Ideas, first published in\u00a02010 and reissued in\u00a02022. The book examines in\u00a0detail the life of\u00a0Pier Paolo Pasolini \u2014 poet, film director, and one of\u00a0the most influential intellectuals of\u00a0the 20th century. Carnero analyzes Pasolini\u2019s literary works, the social and cultural context in\u00a0which he\u00a0worked, and also addresses his personality and the criminal charges brought against him.<\/p>\n
In\u00a0the 2024 Russian edition, much of\u00a0this material is\u00a0missing. Entire paragraphs and even pages were cut about Pasolini\u2019s homosexuality, his coming of\u00a0age, and his search for identity. Gone, too, are Carnero\u2019s comments on\u00a0the film Sal\u00f2, or\u00a0the 120 Days of\u00a0Sodom, in\u00a0which he\u00a0discusses the links between power, violence, and sexuality. Passages about Pasolini\u2019s trials were also censored, as\u00a0well as\u00a0quotations from his texts that touched on\u00a0homosexuality.<\/p>\n
Artist ESKA:<\/p>\n
Blackout is\u00a0a\u00a0technique of\u00a0writing in\u00a0which an\u00a0existing text is\u00a0redacted, with \u201dexcess\u201d words crossed out so\u00a0that the remaining ones form a\u00a0new, standalone text with its own meaning.<\/p>\n
Pasolini: Dying for Ideas became one of\u00a0the most striking publishing responses to\u00a0the tightening of\u00a0restrictions in\u00a0the [Russian] book industry. The edition is\u00a0filled with black bars that don\u2019t just obscure stray references to\u00a0subjects the state considers undesirable, but whole paragraphs and pages. I\u00a0wanted to\u00a0take the next step \u2014 to\u00a0intensify this \u201dblackout mode\u201d even further, leaving only scattered words to\u00a0create new statements that speak to\u00a0the present moment.<\/p>\n
Alexey Polyarinov. Cadavers<\/p>\n
Inspiria, 2024<\/p>\n
Cadavers by\u00a0Alexey Polyarinov is\u00a0a\u00a0post-apocalyptic story set in\u00a0southern Russia. Its protagonist, a\u00a0scientist, travels the region seeking out, photographing, and documenting \u201ccadavers.\u201d That\u2019s the name given to\u00a0the dead children who have begun appearing across the country \u2014 in\u00a0forests, fields, even residential courtyards \u2014 for reasons no\u00a0one can explain. Polyarinov writes about survival, memory, and language, blending prose with pseudo-documentary fragments: newspaper clippings, citations, and excerpts from research.<\/p>\n
In\u00a0the editions sold in\u00a0Russian bookstores, only one scene is\u00a0cut: a\u00a0dispute over an\u00a0Adyghe-language sign in\u00a0a\u00a0school, which leads to\u00a0arrests and spontaneous uprisings. In\u00a0place of\u00a0the names, ethnic markers, place names, and the events themselves are the repeated words: \u2018[data removed].\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Artist Ada Kazantseva:<\/p>\n
I\u00a0wanted to\u00a0imagine a\u00a0new reality, one where the images are, on\u00a0the one hand, familiar and recognizable, but at\u00a0the same time something about them is\u00a0off, creating a\u00a0sense of\u00a0unease. It\u00a0seems like the figure of\u00a0a\u00a0woman \u2014 arms, legs, a\u00a0head \u2014 but instead of\u00a0eyes, the camera shows the back of\u00a0her head. In\u00a0this new pseudo-reality, it\u2019s unclear what works and\u00a0how. And when things are unclear, it\u2019s always frightening. I\u00a0live in\u00a0a\u00a0world invented by\u00a0someone else, and right now someone is\u00a0deciding for me\u00a0whether or\u00a0not I\u00a0get to\u00a0write this text.<\/p>\n
Salman Rushdie. Knife: Meditations After an\u00a0Attempted Murder<\/p>\n
Russian translation published by\u00a0AST, Corpus, 2025 <\/p>\n
In\u00a0August 2022, Booker Prize\u2013winning author of\u00a0The Satanic Verses Salman Rushdie survived an\u00a0assassination attempt: he\u00a0was attacked on\u00a0stage in\u00a0Chautauqua, New York, stabbed 15 times, and spent months recovering. That experience became the basis of\u00a0his book Knife: Meditations After an\u00a0Attempted Murder, published in\u00a02024. In\u00a0it, Rushdie writes about the attack, his recovery, and a\u00a0world where words can still cost lives.<\/p>\n
In\u00a0the Russian edition, black bars cover parts of\u00a0his reflections on\u00a0global politics and religious conflict, along with passages on\u00a0the treatment of\u00a0religious and ethnic minorities, threats to\u00a0democracy, and wars and the ways states respond to\u00a0them.<\/p>\n
Artist Linda Auss:<\/p>\n
All these black lines, squares, and rectangles across the pages of\u00a0books are the physical embodiment of\u00a0imposed ignorance. First it\u00a0was one book and a\u00a0few words blotted\u00a0out. Then these black shapes grew into paragraphs, and later into entire pages. There\u2019s already a\u00a0long list of\u00a0books covered by\u00a0them. I\u00a0wanted to\u00a0work with this geometry and the sheer mass of\u00a0blackness. I\u00a0started by\u00a0pasting one sheet to\u00a0my\u00a0wall, then another, until eventually the wall was covered and the darkness became palpable. Gradually, behind it, things that had once been obvious and familiar stopped being recognizable and disappeared.<\/p>\n
Yumi Stynes, Melissa Kang. Welcome to\u00a0Your Period!<\/p>\n
Russian translation published by\u00a0Albus Corvus, 2020<\/p>\n
Yumi Stynes is\u00a0an\u00a0Australian television journalist and host of\u00a0the women\u2019s health podcast Ladies, We\u00a0Need to\u00a0Talk. Together with adolescent medicine specialist\u00a0Dr. Melissa Kang, she co-authored a\u00a0series of\u00a0educational books on\u00a0growing up\u00a0\u2014 Welcome to\u00a0Consent, Welcome to\u00a0Sex, and Welcome to\u00a0Your Period! The latter was translated into Russian.<\/p>\n
This book is\u00a0a\u00a0lively, illustrated guide for teenagers, in\u00a0which the authors tackle a\u00a0wide range of\u00a0topics relevant to\u00a0modern girlhood \u2014 physiology, hygiene, and taboo questions \u2014 with humor and clarity. In\u00a0the Russian print edition, an\u00a0entire chapter on\u00a0transgender people was removed. In\u00a0its place are blank pages with a\u00a0note citing restrictions under Russian law.<\/p>\n
Agustina Bazterrica. The Unworthy<\/p>\n
Russian translation published by\u00a0Inspiria, 2024<\/p>\n
Argentine writer Agustina Bazterrica rose to\u00a0international fame with her 2017 novel Tender Is\u00a0the Flesh, which has been translated into dozens of\u00a0languages. Her new book, The Unworthy, published in\u00a0Russian in\u00a02024, is\u00a0set inside a\u00a0closed religious community where girls grow up\u00a0under constant violence and control. Bazterrica explores themes of\u00a0women\u2019s bodies, freedom, and spiritual resistance in\u00a0a\u00a0world where faith is\u00a0used as\u00a0a\u00a0tool of\u00a0oppression.<\/p>\n
In\u00a0the Russian edition, censors blacked out paragraphs describing the heroines\u2019 physical intimacy and sensual experiences, as\u00a0well as\u00a0passages where the body becomes part of\u00a0mystical and religious experience.<\/p>\n
Artist Marta Milao:<\/p>\n
Censorship is\u00a0nonexistence, a\u00a0place where not only letters, words, and sentences disappear. It\u00a0mutilates a\u00a0text that no\u00a0one but the author has the right to\u00a0change. If\u00a0the state encroaches on\u00a0what we\u00a0say and how we\u00a0say it, does it\u00a0take away part of\u00a0our life in\u00a0that moment? If\u00a0it\u00a0can erase from a\u00a0text mentions of\u00a0thoughts, feelings, actions, and people, do\u00a0they still remain part of\u00a0the story?<\/p>\n
Thinking about this, I\u00a0turned to\u00a0the format of\u00a0a\u00a0photo diary. I\u00a0imagined what would happen if\u00a0I\u00a0\u201chid\u201d [the things that matter to\u00a0me] in\u00a0photographs \u2014 my\u00a0cat, my\u00a0friends, my\u00a0home, my\u00a0partner, holidays \u2014 as\u00a0well as\u00a0everyday moments. As\u00a0in\u00a0some censored sentences, sometimes the hidden object in\u00a0a\u00a0photo can still be\u00a0partly discerned. But sometimes the black ink leaves nothing to\u00a0hold on\u00a0to. You can\u2019t make out the object or\u00a0reconstruct the scene in\u00a0your mind. And then it\u00a0becomes impossible to\u00a0understand what\u2019s in\u00a0front of\u00a0you \u2014 the person or\u00a0the moment from my\u00a0life is\u00a0simply gone.<\/p>\n