In an engaging style, not lacking in irony and detachment, Milan Šimečka describes the process of restoring order and its result—so-called real socialism—in a brilliant analysis of the “normalization” regime in Czechoslovakia that came to power after the Soviet-led invasion that crushed the Prague Spring of 1968. These poignant reflections and essays coincided with Šimečka’s first-hand experience of the consequences of the time’s political and cultural purges.

This second edition of Cold War classics, first written between 1975 and 1977, with a new preface from Martin Šimečka and afterword from Martin Bútora, highlights chilling parallels with contemporary political developments and current civic and ethical questions.