DeJong establishes the setting in the opening lines of the novel. A fishing village on the North Sea protected by a dike, Shora is located in the province of Friesland. The village of Ternaard is located south of Shora, and the next village along the dike to the northeast is Nes. A canal road connects Shora to Hantum.

The novel's depiction of Dutch village life may at first appear out of step with the rushing modern world of rapid travel and instant communications. The story probably takes place around 1912, when DeJong himself could have been one of the pupils in the village school. At this time, before the two world wars, people in Shora dress as they have for centuries, wearing native costumes and wooden shoes. Almost no events from the world at large seem important in this small village, which depends on fishing for its livelihood. The...