What does it feel like to be young today? Arno Geiger tells the story of Julian, a veterinary medicine student who is experiencing his first breakup and is amazed at how much chaos such a separation can create. To alleviate the disorder a bit, he takes care of a pygmy hippopotamus at Professor Beham's, which soon sets the rhythm of summer: it eats, yawns, dives, and smells. Julian falls in love with Aiko, the professor's daughter, anxiously follows the daily shockwaves of disasters flooding the globe, and goes through a time of upheaval and new beginnings. A novel about the search for a place in the world.