"I used to be human once. So I'm told. I don't remember it myself, but people who knew me when I was small say I walked on two feet just like a human being."
But now Jaanvar - Animal - walks on all fours, the catastrophic result of what happended on That Night, when the Apocalypse visited his slums, thanks to an American chemical company. He lives hand-to-mouth existence, with a crazy old nun called Ma Franci; Suman, the daughter of a local musician; and his dog Jara. Each of them had their lives irreversibly changed on That Night.
When a young American doctor called Elli Barber comes to town, she intends to set up a clinic to treat the lingering consequences. But how can she persuade people who have been so harmed by foreigners that she isn't there to exploit them? How can she heal the wounds that lie underneath the skin? How can she win over Animal and his people?
