Sitora Farmonova

“Whatever falls from heaven, you may keep.” So goes the unwritten law of the Kazakh steppes. A law avidly adhered to by the inhabitants of a small village, who collect the space debris that falls downrange from the nearby Baikonur space station. The last two youthful members of the village are the radio operator Iskander, known as Gagarin, and the spirited Nazira. While Nazira finds it increasing difficult to conceal her love for Iskander by means of her unconventional behaviour, Iskander is evidently not only crazy about Baikonur and the vastness of outer space, but also deeply smitten with the beautiful French astronaut Julie Mahé, whose journey to the stars he wistfully follows on television.

Tengiz marries Madiyar, an only child, and is forced to conceive within a month of their marriage. At her mother-in-law’s insistence, she hops on a train to go to the hospital and visit her parents along the way. There she learns that the train vendor Anargul and Madiyar may be having an affair.