The novel consists of four sections over 572 pages: "Departure," "Meeting," "Attempt," and "Return." The plot centers on a quest for knowledge, a common theme in literary narratives. After more than fifty years of disciplined work, the scholar Raimund Gregorius decides to leave his old life and resign from his job as a teacher to travel to Lisbon without warning, in search of "Amadeu de Prado," the Portuguese author of the rare book "The Goldsmith of Words" that Raimund stumbled upon by chance. In this quest, the protagonist tries to discover his inner self, as Amadeu did in his memoirs.

The narrative style is slow-paced with extensive descriptions, employing the defamiliarization technique noted by Russian formalist critic Shklovsky, which slows down the description of events. This technique aims to make the reader pay special attention to the described scenes, preventing him from perceiving the event automatically.

This technique is frequently used in the novel, such as in the psychological state of "Adriana," Amadeu's sister, who lives in the past after his death. Her hand tremors weakened and slowed, as her emotions gradually waned. Exhausted, Adriana leaned against the wall, then retreated to the center of the room and sat on a chair, with her forehead adorned with grains of sand falling from the wall stones.

This deliberately extended descriptive scene reveals the depth of the emotions that gripped Adriana and the sense of timelessness, influenced by the memory of her deceased brother, who saved her life from death.