The author recounts her witness of European politics as a center-right journalist covering European affairs. A celebrated author of Eastern European political history of the 20th-century, she is an American expatriate to Poland where she is also a public figure as the wife of a prominent politician who has fallen out with the far right government that has consolidated political control. Poland's leadership suppresses dissent, demonizes immigrants and jews, controls media messaging and reach, and promotes a brand of cultural traditionalism. Applebaum also follows parallels in the recent conservative political movements in the UK, Hungary, and the USA. These movements market "restorative nostalgia" to rally conservatives to nationalist causes like Brexit and MAGA, building a base from fear of the social changes in our modern age. Some of these leaders and activists were once allies of Applebaum, as conscientious anti-communists seeking a more free Europe and America, but having come into power have adopted the very strategies of authoritarianism they used to denounce communism. And it's hard to tell how much of this consolidation of power is for their extremist ideals or for power's sake.

I can't decide whether to be optimistic or pessimistic after this book. I think Applebaum could have added case studies (to varying degrees) in Turkey, Israel, Brazil, Russia, Italy, France, and China. I worry for the state of pluralism and liberal democracy around the world. These authoritarian-leaning states embrace the cynicism of their message, and it seems to be very effective. Maybe our modern political malpractice will be a counterexample that future generations will reject. ( )

The author covers the rise of authoritarianism in countries ranging from Law and Justice in Poland to Orban's Hungary. Brexit's rise, along with Vox in Spain are analyzed for the common theme of, not the Big Lie, but the "Mid-Lie." Under two hundred pages, Applebaum closes with her experience with some of Trump's eventual supporters. I found many of her chapters so basic that I slid into skimming. We all know about Trump and the birther movement. Applebaum explained how the conspiracy theory behind the Smolensk plane crash helped feed the rise of Law and Justice. This before the abortion issue in Poland provoked thousands of Polish women into protest. The book closed with less than inspiring messages of hope. I have read Applebaum's other books, and found them well researched, well-written and thorough. Clearly, Twilight of Democracy was a light diversion before tackling a weightier, more voluminous challenge which I will look forward to reading. I'm afraid I cannot recommend this one -- closer to two and a half than three. ( )

Describes broadly authoritarianism's rise in Poland, Hungry, England, and to a lesser extent Spain and the US. In those examples there are common elements: nationalist parties winning slim majorities who, once in power, co-opt the media, replace the bureaucratic meritocracy with a patronage system -- loyalty is more important than competence -- and blatantly lie about internal and external threats. She suggests the authoritarian appeal is people's reaction to complexity in the world: immigration, gender issues, shifting power balances, etc. She also points out that differences that would have been secondary concerns in the past now get amplified by targeted marketing and state actors but doesn't delve into the details. ( )

This book traces the uprising of authoritarianism throughout the western world, concentrating on Poland, a Hungary, Britain and the United States. It’s a terrifying read for many reasons and the two options she presents at the end for our future...well, I’m not an optimist.

I didn’t always agree with her politics (I’m clearly far to the left of her) but she made some good points and the book is horrifying and I fear prescient.

I wish she’d said more about Trump...she seemed to kind of skip over a lot of the things he’d done and how dangerous he is although she also clearly wasn’t a fan. ( )

I was probably looking for something a bit more scholarly when I picked this one up, but I can still recommend this brief, readable, and well-timed book. Anne Applebaum seems to have been in exactly the right time and in exactly the right place to tell the story of how conservatives in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States lost the plot after the Cold War ended, resorting to populist strategies and giving into latent xenophobic urges. Although she doesn't name every participant she mentions here, the author is to be commended for at least naming a few names. As one of this book's alternate subtitles suggests, publishing this one probably cost Applebaum a few friends, though, despite that, she also writes that she has expanded her network in ways that would have once surprised her and feels at least some hope for the future.

As for the ideas that I found interesting on a personal level, Applebaum convincingly argues that the illiberal Right is more of a coordinated movement than a lot of people would assume. I was one of those people that considered David Frum's "Axis of Evil" speech a bit of a reach, to put it mildly; "Twilight of Democracy" makes it seem somewhat more plausible. She also usefully defines nostalgia that is merely personal or aesthetic -- which is generally harmless -- and what she calls "restorative nostalgia," which seems actively seeks to bring back political situations that have already been consigned to history. Her analysis of how this phenomenon connects with the British drive for Brexit is especially interesting. So although this book wasn't what I was expecting, I'll recommend it: it's bracing, intelligent, and, deeply felt. I don't think many books that I've read about politics have been worthy of those three particular adjectives. ( )