Nagging discontent runs through these spare and often humorous stories, presented by a narrator who conducts surveys for a living. Fed up with watching television with her
husband every night rather than going out, she finds, through her polls, other women who also feel stuck—their entertainment is food, the computer, and crossword puzzles. Each of
them wants to take up new activities and get out of the daily grind, but all of them describe unexpected obstacles, as in the story of Léa's decision to take belly dancing lessons with
her friend Maud and her husband's surprising reaction.
