The first section, which is itself the prologue, describes the world of a pre-war
Bucharest, as narrated by an aging, potentially dying, author while focusing on the improbable and explicitly impossible story of a homeless young man who serves as the stubborn center of progressively more absurd games of
Russian roulette which become progressively more peopled by the wealthy upper-crust of the capital. The second section brings alive a universe of children through a
magical realist writing style that focuses upon a prepubescent messiah who has begun to lose his magical powers while working wonders for his young followers. This section has a famous scene that makes the reader feel voyeur into the world of
Marcel Proust when the main character falls into "unbearable nostalgia" by virtue of a bright pink lighter. The third section is an exploration of the pinnacle of romantic love between two adolescents, culminating with them swapping souls after their first night together. The final part of the main portion of this book is centered around Nana, a middle aged woman engaged in an affair with a college student, as well as her memories of being 12 years old, when she was visited by a mother and son pair of gigantic skeletons. The last portion of this novel focuses on a man who becomes obsessed with his car horn, the repercussions of which spiral far beyond his control. ==Reception==