Having to balance his marriage, a newborn son, friends up the street, going to school and how all those components intersect, Bertram finds managing all of it rather tumultuous. Amongst the disarray, a self-identity crisis sets in, creating an isolation from the people he cares about. The book chronicles this transformation in 45 chapters and divided into 3 movements. First being The Realist, the beginning movement starts in a state of certainty. In the second movement, The Surrealist, it shows the unsure nature of Bertram and how to decipher all of the changes. Finally, in the third movement, The Fauvist, Bertram then struggles how to exist in a life that is foreign to him and amongst that struggle, he questions how he fits into the whole scheme. Heart of Griserie is a tale of strange love, rather it be for a person or an idea. Like many different populations, there is a battle and a desire to attain self-enlightenment, whatever it may be for that person. And sometimes, that strife has to be repeatedly endured, finding different results each time.