A young woman of Calabrian origin, Gianna Mancuso, becomes a widow on Christmas Eve. This dramatic fact causes her to withdraw into herself and refuse any kind of sympathy from the rest of the family. On the surface Gianna seems indifferent to what has happened and scandalizes everyone by laughing and joking with an old friend during her husband’s funeral, by treating her brother, who tries to help her, rudely; she asks that only her nephew Andrea, with whom she shares an exaggerated love for films, fables and the fantastic, come to stay with her. A few evenings later Gianna discovers that someone is able to enter her home without the least difficulty. Nobody believes her except the child who is intrigued by this strange story. In the eyes of Andrea this will be an unforgettable December, full of adventures, traps, flight, and tales told by candle-light. Together the two of them will defeat the burglar, a workman who had come to fix a broken lock a few days before. On the morning of New Year’s Day Andrea is taken back home by his parents. He continues to think of his aunt Gianna: he sees her as beautiful self confident, a winner. He can not imagine that now the woman must face one of the hardest struggles of her life alone in the solitary immensity of her empty house.