In the titular story, a father buys a second-hand motorcycle (the "Top") to start a small delivery business. As he spends his life savings repairing the engine, his son dreams of riding it to school. The engine never starts. Critics have pointed out that the "Top" is a metaphor for the family itself—full of potential energy, yet unable to transition from a state of rest to motion. Conversations between parents and children, or between husband and wife, are filled with half-finished sentences. The collection masterfully portrays how poverty and trauma create silent households.