The author has chosen to show the plight of ordinary men, women and children caught in the turmoil of human madness. One by one, the main characters tell their harrowing stories to a listening priest. Then follows explanation of the psychological effects on emotionally damaged psyche, because there is an aftermath. We can imagine that the purpose of this book is healing of the emotional pain that of the author and that of the public who have witnessed these horrors. This is not an easy read. Emotions run high. Nothing is spared to the reader. One is reminded of the Marquis de Sade or Kafka in extremism of the ordeal man is made to endure. Death, in this book, becomes a person exacting its measure on the innocent and the not so innocent. The Hutu are not the only ones to blame. Colonization of the country has had its effect on the different ethnic groups in Cyacu. And yet, the book is not about hatred and revenge. It is about love thy enemy and forgiveness. Man's greatness is in rising above the circumstances that drag him down.