Ally-The Perforated Passport-A Free People in Our Land

fathom v.理解；彻底了解；弄清真相

refuseniks 

Refuseniks included Jews who desired to emigrate on religious grounds, Jews seeking to immigrate to Israel for Zionist aspirations, and relatively secular Jews desiring to escape continuous state-sponsored antisemitism. 

gulags

The Gulag (/ ˈ ɡ uː l ɑː ɡ /, UK also /-l æ ɡ /; Russian: ГУЛаг, romanized: GULag, (), acronym of Main Administration of Camps) was the government agency in charge of the Soviet forced-labour camp-system that was set up under Vladimir Lenin and reached its peak during Joseph Stalin's rule from the 1930s to the early 1950s. 

spurn all relations  n.拒绝；藐视；唾弃；不理睬 v.（尤指傲慢地）拒绝

The training was cursory adj.粗略的；仓促的

the warning blunt  adj.不锋利的；钝的；嘴直的；直言的 n.钝器；短粗的针[雪茄烟等]；现钞 v.使减弱；使降低效应；使（尖端、刃）变钝

IDF veteran Israel Defense Force

stiffly adv.僵硬地；一动也不动；冷冷地；不灵

death throes n.剧痛；阵痛；死亡前的挣扎；(新事物等)产生前的挣扎[困难] v.非常受痛苦

mounds of garbage and open ditches of sludge sagged immense gray buildings    

mound n.土墩；小丘；小山岗；一堆

sludge n.淤泥；烂泥；烂泥状沉积物；工业淤渣 v.涂上污泥；清除污泥；【医】使成血泥v.筑堤；造土墩子；筑堤防御

lurk agents of the secret police-the ruthless KGB

lurk  v.潜伏；（不好或危险的事）潜在；“ 潜水 ” n.诡计；妙计；花招

ruthless adj.残酷无情的；残忍的

sneer at our KGB tails v.嘲笑；讥讽；嗤笑 n.嘲笑；讥讽

Trans-Carpathian Mountains [kɑrˈpeθiən] n.嗝尔巴阡山脉

The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians (/kɑːrˈpeɪθiənz/) are a range of mountains forming an arc throughout Central and Eastern Europe. Roughly 1,500 km (932 mi) long, it is the third-longest European mountain range after the Urals with 2,500 km (1,553 mi) and the Scandinavian Mountains with 1,700 km (1,056 mi).

incongruous background [ɪn'kɑŋɡruəs] adj.不合适的；不相称的；不协调的

I was accosted by several club-wielding KGB thugs

[ə'kɔst] v.（贸然）上前搭讪；（唐突地）走近谈话

挥舞着球杆棍棒的 n.暴徒；恶棍；罪犯

the largest brute n.残酷的人；暴君；大野兽；牲畜 adj.蛮干不动脑筋的；根本而令人不快的；赤裸裸的

goon  n.（受人雇用的）打手；傻瓜；蠢人

endless harangues about the "hoodlums"

[həˈræŋ]n.(对公众集会作的)长篇大论的演说；高谈阔论；冗长的说教文章；叱责v.(向…)作长篇大论的演说；(向…)高谈阔论

['hudləm] n.流氓

out for a jog v.慢跑；轻碰 n.慢跑（尤指锻炼）；轻推；轻碰；轻击

a grim industrial town adj.严肃的；坚定的；阴冷的；令人不快的

bleak country adj.不乐观的；无望的；暗淡的；阴冷的 n.【鱼】(淡水产)银鲤

the convoy doubled v.护送；伴送；〈古〉引导(宾客等) n.船队

babushka at the desk [bə'bʊʃkə] 祖母；婆婆头巾（传统俄罗斯头巾，在颏下打结）

pummel us with questions v.连续猛击；反复拳打；捶打

Passover matzah 

Passover or Pesach (/ ˈ p ɛ s ɑː x, ˈ p eɪ-/; Hebrew: פֶּסַח Pesaḥ/ Peḏaḥ) is a major Jewish holiday and one of the most widely celebrated Jewish holidays. Together with Shavuot and Sukkot, Passover was one of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals (Shalosh Regalim) during which the entire population of the kingdom of Judah made a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem.

Matzo, matzah, or matza (Yiddish: מצה ‎ matsoh, Hebrew: מַצָּה matsa; plural matzot; matzos of Ashkenazi Jewish dialect) is an unleavened flatbread that is part of Jewish cuisine and forms an integral element of the Passover festival, during which chametz (leaven and five grains that, per Jewish Law, can be leavened) is forbidden.jackbooted KGB agents

nearly unhinging the door v.取下…的铰链；把…从铰链上摘下；使分开；使(精神等)发狂

hustle us down the stairs v.推搡；猛推；催促（某人作决定）；（常指非法地）兜售 n.忙碌喧嚣

gaunt and pallid

[ɡɔnt] adj.（常因疾病、饥饿或忧虑而）瘦削憔悴的；寒碜的；破败的

['pælɪd] adj.（尤指因病）苍白的；暗淡的；微弱的；乏味的

keep reverberating in my mind [rɪ'vɜrbə.reɪt] v.混响；反射；(球等)弹回；(反射炉)返焰

clash of the courage n.冲突；交锋；比赛；差别 v.冲突；比赛；抵触；相矛盾