This novel in the Hainish cycle is a reflection on the conflict of politics & religion in our world, & the story of a spiritual journey. Sutty, an Observer for the interstellar Ekumen, has been assigned to Aka, a world in the grip of a materialistic gov't. The monolithic State of Aka has outlawed all old customs & beliefs. Sutty herself, an Earthwoman, has fled from a similar monolithic state -- but one controlled by religious fundamentalists. She travels into the countryside to seek the remnants of the banned culture of Aka. She lives with the people & begins to learn their religion -- the Telling. As she joins them on a trek to one of the last sacred places, she glimpses hope for the reconcil. of the warring ideol. that have filled their lives, & her own, with grief.