Merin is wealthy. He possesses all the privileges and goods that white South Africa has to offer, yet his assets refuse to remain tangible. His wife, his son, and his mistress leave him. The foreman and his workers gradually begin to disregard his instructions – even the land revolts, as drought followed by floods devastate his farm.

And while the turmoil in Merin's world increasingly reflects the overall situation of his homeland, it becomes evident that only a radical change in ideas and actions can prevent annihilation. One of Gordimer's most popular novels, it won the Booker Prize in 1974, the first major accolade for Gordimer before she received the Nobel Prize for her body of work.

"Nadine Gordimer writes about blacks and whites, but her steady gaze ultimately discerns something gray. You might call it human nature – and you would be right." Daily Telegraph

"If we were to read no other book about apartheid South Africa, this novel by Gordimer would be enough... (As a literary archivist of history, Gordimer has no equal.) Sunday Times