A group of linked stories that memorialize Danilo Kis’s early years in a Yugoslavian village. Kis, famous for The Encyclopedia of the Dead , Hourglass , and A Tomb for Boris Davidovich , was born there in 1935. All his work seeks to show the fundamental importance of his childhood experiences. This work covers his crucial first bereavements and humiliations. The 19 pieces strike various tones - from pastorals to exercises in humour. As Kis grows up, his childhood seems at first secure. He can only sense that terrible things may be going on in the world. And then one day, many people from the village are herded together and taken away, among them his father, the dreamer.