Timerman describes the ordinary Chilean's survival tactics in a society where one can be arrested without reason, and where thousands have been tortured, murdered or "disappeared" by right-wing squads. He presents a shocking portrayal of the daily horrors of life under General Pinochet's dictatorship. The well-known Argentinian journalist and author of Prisoner Without a Name, Cell Without a Number discusses the pauperization of Chile's middle class, massive poverty and unemployment, the drying up of cultural life. Interwoven with his short narrative are testimonies from Chileans who were tortured or raped while in prison. Timerman skims over the U.S. role in propping up the military regime it helped install, and his proposals for dislodging Pinochet seem wishful thinking. Still, his report is a powerful and disturbing call to conscience. (Publishers Weekly, 1987).