Although the stories are quite different in time and place, in mood and color, there is a thread that connects the main character with each happening, each new encounter, each mishap and each joy.
The tales show a woman enamored with the ideal of love yet unable to understand and enjoy sex. It is a woman who adores men but is afraid of their physical power, their superior muscular strength, a woman who had many lovers, not to mention two husbands, but was unable or unwilling to hold on to them.