Woven with the unmistakable rhythm and great sensitivity that trademarks Rivas works, the stories contained in this book revolve around love the love of a father that leaves to work worried about where and how his son has spent the night; the love felt for a mother, indescribably similar, to the milkmaid captured by Vermeer in 1690; the more carnal love of Camina, with the uncomfortable presence of her dog Tarzan; or, why not?, the compassionate love the reader feels for the old professor in rural Spain in La lengua de las mariposas .