First U.S. publication. In spare, elegant prose, this modern novella recounts a troubled young villager's flight to the comfortable anonymity of a city — a respite that's shattered by the appearance of his boyhood love, along with husband and child. "Many of Kristof's stark vignettes, reported in unflinching detail . . . have a cool, disturbing power — part documentary-like, part surreal — that is fierce and distinctive." — Kirkus Reviews.