When he reads about a mysterious explosion in the distant countryside, the narrator's thoughts turn to his disappeared childhood friend, M, who was abducted from his home years ago during a spasm of political violence in Buenos Aires in the early 1970s. He convinces himself that M must have died in the explosion and he begins to tell their story hoping to reanimate his lost friend and relive the time they spent together. Sergio Chejfec's The Planets is an affecting and innovative exploration of mourning, remembrance and friendship by one of Argentina's modern masters.