Indian food to books, what Navalny's letters say about his last days in prison

Alexei Navalny's final months in prison were melancholic and lonely, but he kept himself busy by drowning himself in books, writing letters and preparing for the future, in case he ever got out.

The Kremlin critic died last week in a Russian prison after he reportedly "fell ill," a theory many have questioned. Till now, Navalny's body has not been handed over to his family as its whereabouts remain unclear.

While Navalny's aides have spoken little about his last moments, excerpts from letters he wrote to the Russian journalist Ilya Krasilshchik have been shared by The New York Times. "The letters reveal the depth of the ambition, resolve and curiosity of a leader who galvanized the opposition to President Vladimir Putin and who, supporters hope, will live on as a unifying symbol of their resistance," the report says.

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Navalny's love for books

In prison, books were his best friend. The letters reveal that Navalny read as many as 44 books each year and studied political memoirs.

In a letter dated April 2023, Navalny told Krasilshchik that he read 10 books simultaneously and used to “switch between them.”

Navalny's love for memoirs grew when he was in jail. “For some reason I always despised them. But they’re actually amazing,” the former politician said.

Interest in Indian food

In one of his last hearings, Navalny demanded longer lunch breaks in prison to consume the “two mugs of boiling water and two pieces of disgusting bread.”

The appeal, however, was rejected, put light on Navalny's culinary taste. In another letter to his journalist friend, Navalny wrote that he preferred doner kebabs to falafel. He also said that he had started to grow an interest in Indian food.

Networking

Although in solitary, Navalny was able to communicate with the outside world.

The Kremlin critic sent hundreds of handwritten letters to his friends and supporters. People could also write to him via a website that charged 40 cents a page and receive scans of his responses.

Navalny was also in touch with the outside world through his lawyers who often held up documents against the window in the visiting rooms at the prison.

Then there were the court appearances where Navalny got ample chances to express his dissent for the system.