August 15, 1953 was the day of a wild street carnival in the Italian immigrant enclave of Ohio. A simple baker, Rocco Lagrassa, whose life has long been going downhill, receives shocking news about the death of his son in a prison camp in Korea. But he is not the only one full of torment. A surgeon who performs illegal abortions, a mysterious dressmaker, a teenager and a jeweler will all find themselves in the carnival crowd on the day of the holiday - a day that will force each of them to rethink everything that is important to them. Awards and Awards National Book Award Finalist Young Lions Fiction Award Winner Whiting Award Published in Russian for the first time.