This Iranian writer narrates the peculiar adventures of Shahab, a four-year-old boy who has not spoken yet. He seems dumb, retarded, and is sometimes the laughing stock of people. The story is based on real events: a boy who did not speak until he was seven years old. His father regards the situation as an outrage to the dignity of the family; his mother, on the contrary, will try to protect him, with greater or lesser success, from all dangers. It is not really dumb a disease, but Shahab simply considers that the time to speak has not arrived yet. Silence is a defensive weapon: he hides his voice because he is fed up with others thinking that he is stupid and that he does everything wrong. Since the rarefied family environment does not help him overcome his fears and objections, he locks himself in his little world, talking to his imaginary friends, and sometimes exploding with violent reactions. His grandmother Bibi will know how to touch his heart and find the solution: the importance for the person to recognize those around himself, and to feel loved.
The author, in line with the story, describes some customs of the Iranian society: the life of families, the subordinate situation of women, etc. Most of the novel is narrated in the first person, by Shahab, and is easy and enjoyable to read. The book recounts an abortion which Shahab's cousin had, after a relationship with a boy whom she secretly meets, and under the pressure of the country's customs.