" . . . a rewarding book." —Times Literary Supplement Set in the vast windswept Central Asian steppes and the infinite reaches of galactic space, this powerful novel offers a vivid view of the culture and values of the Soviet Union's Central Asian peoples.
In a primeval forest cut off from the rest of the world, a seven-year-old boy and six adults are living. The boy is isolated and lonesome. A connoisseur of folk tales, old Maumoon serves as a substitute for his parents. A world of tales and beautiful legends as perceived by the impressionable child prone to fantastic perceptions of reality conflicts with the harsh existence of adults engrossed in their own problems.