For Soviet people, the collapse of the socialist system was both a complete surprise and entirely predictable. This dramatic event revealed a strange paradox: although most people perceived the Soviet system as eternal and unchangeable, they were, in principle, always prepared for its collapse. University of California, Berkeley professor Alexei Yurchak's book analyzes the system of 'late socialism' (mid-1950s to mid-1980s) from the perspective of this paradox. The image of late socialism that emerges in the book differs radically from the usual stereotypes according to which Soviet reality can be reduced to a description based on simple oppositions: official/unofficial culture, totalitarian language/free language, political repression/civil resistance, public lies/hidden truth. The book was awarded the 2015 Enlightener Prize.