Summer, 1953 in Satka, a small town south of The Urals between war-ravaged Russia and the Siberian gulags. Olga, sole survivor of a family wiped out in the siege of Leningrad, arrives at a communal ex-barracks. Alexei, the militiaman, lives there with his son and girlfriend, Jora - a Jew and former victim of Stalin′s purges - is a photographer and clown. Friedrich, former German soldier, is married to a Russian. Guerka, drunken dove breeder - a former Nazi collaborator. Polina, a Ukrainian; and her mute companion, Karim the Tatar. Olga gradually settles into this community, with its incidents and intrigues; each person trying to bury his oppressive past. Alexei, for example, secretly sells nude photos of his mistress while organizing a major vodka-smuggling network. Olga attends her first ball, organizes a party honouring Polina, and gradually cedes to Alexei′s courtship. Individual destinies, moments of intimacy, and scenes of communal life culminate in three marriages, a birth, and a funeral.