Alexander wants to know more about his friend Mariama's African roots. So she tells him about the rainy season, the savannah, and the long and terrible history of her ancestors, explaining that on her dad's side, the father of her grandfather's great-grandfather was a genius who beheld it all: the arrival of the white men, droves of human beings reduced to slaves, the slavers' ships. With his magical powers, he entrusts his eyes to a bird so it can follow his people and bear witness to each injury and humiliation.
Zaü's pastel illustrations and documents from the era enhance the tale of the terrifying slave trade and its eventual abolition.