Summary

Part One is titled “The Cousins,” which is a reference to the fact that the narrator, Sarah, and her boyfriend, James, introduce themselves to everyone as cousins. Sarah and James are at the edge of the maguey field, prepared for work. They lean close to talk to each other, but they keep up the outward appearance that they are cousins. Sarah is late, as usual, and her coa – a blade used to cut the outer spines from the maguey plant – is dull. James offers to trade but she refuses. They are working on a farm near Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. About half of the North American continent is now desert, “from the Mississippi River to the Pacific” (10). A foreman named Angus comes by. Sarah says he is being too rough with his horse, which makes Angus yank on the reins...