Tired of his unfruitful existence, Yakov Bok moves to Kiev during Tsar Nicolas II’s reign to seek a better future. He soon finds work, but is forced to keep his Jewish identity a secret. However, after the murder of a Russian boy too close to his workplace, he is accused of carrying out the crime. And in a time of anti-Semitic virulence, there won’t be a lack of witnesses, evidence, and accusations all aimed at condemning him. This novel, which earned Bernard Malamud the Pulitzer Prize, explores how the idea of freedom grows within a man while he is the subject of a great injustice. Harto de su infructuosa existencia, Yakov Bok busca un futuro mejor en Kiev durante la época del zar Nicolás II. Pronto consigue un trabajo, pero se ve obligado a no revelar su identidad judía. Sin embargo, tras el asesinato de un niño ruso demasiado cerca de su puesto de trabajo, le señalan como autor del crimen, y no faltarán testigos, pruebas y acusaciones orientados a condenarle en una época de gran virulencia antisemita. Esta novela, la cual le obtuvo el premio Pulitzer a Bernard Malamud, explora cómo la idea de libertad crece en la conciencia de un hombre sometido a una terrible injusticia.