In these three warm and nuanced tales, Indonesia's supreme storyteller Pramoedya Ananta Toer gives us vivid, memorable characters caught between optimism and a darker place. A disabled veteran of his country's war of independence against the Dutch slowly succumbs to despair; a child bride's lost innocence is cherished by her observant younger neighbour; and a young boy views his impending circumcision with anxiety and excitement on account of its significance – and the gifts that will accompany it.