A man suddenly loses his sight. The incidents of sudden blindness escalate and the government decides to quarantine the blind. With bureaucratic precision, José Saramago has calculated everything that could happen in a world that loses its vision. How long will traffic on the streets be smooth? How long will the food be enough for the hungry hordes? How long does it take for the supply of electricity, gas, and water to collapse? What will happen to pets? Sexual barriers? How many blind people create blindness?

And finally: In a world of blind people, what would you do if you could see?

The cover of the new edition of the book features a scene from the eponymous film by Fernando Meirelles (2008), starring Mark Ruffalo and Julianne Moore.