Investigating Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, journalist Carl Streator finds the same anthology of poems and rhymes at each child's bedside. The book is always opened to a specific African chant--a culling song that kills when recited, whether silently or aloud. Suddenly, Carl's knowledge of the chant makes him an involuntary serial murderer and he must learn to control himself, then remove all copies of the book from libraries across the country.