Stijn Streuvels, whose real name was Frank Lateur, was a Belgian author known for his contributions to Flemish literature. He wrote novels, short stories, and essays, and his works often depicted rural life in Flanders.
The title of the book presents its great theme about individual lives being laid out like a path, each with its own possible turnings. In this case, the main protagonist is a young girl of lively intelligence who is being prepared for her first holy communion.
Layer by layer, the path to that special day is built up - the practice sessions, the special clothing, the special attention given to a village's new "class" of Catholic children.
The book concludes by pointing to the often difficult challenges individuals have to face after the "special day" is over, focusing on the loss of the protected status of childhood and alluding to the darker aspects of life as a young woman from an economically less advantaged country family.