"A rich symphony of humanity . . . If Oz's eye for detail is enviable, it is his magnanimity which raises him to the first rank of world authors." --Sunday Telegraph (UK)

At Tel-Kedar, a settlement in the Negev desert, the longtime love affair between Theo, a sixty-year-old civil engineer, and Noa, a young schoolteacher, is slowly disintegrating. When a pupil dies under difficult circumstances, the couple and the entire town are thrown into turmoil. Amos Oz explores with brilliant insight the possibilities--and limits--of love and tolerance.

"Vivid, convincing, and haunting." --New York Times Book Review