The richness of this novel may be in the blatant episodes the author portrays along with the graphic verbal discourse. The plot starts with a female journalist witnessing an assassination while reporting on a slum. The fact had such an impact on her that she believes that the spirit of the murdered boy follows her. The urban area is described as a place where neither life nor death make sense. The thread of the discourse is interrupted by illustrations that seem to compete with the words, as if both represented the ruptures occurring in so many lives in urban centers like Rio de Janeiro. However, this is not a novel that simply describes violence in a large city. Through words and illustrations it carves out the impact of violence on its inhabitants. Fear is transformed into paranoia, a friendly person becomes agoraphobic, dreams and ideals are ruptured. People disappear, along with their plans, friends, and families. Everything has to be rebuilt upon the destruction imparted by death. Novel may be seen as a trailblazer, for its focus and organization (words and drawings), in the literature on violence in Brazil. It was among the finalists for the 2008 Sa o Paulo Literature Award.