Book I, The Stone-Carriers Summary

With Athos, high on Zakynthos, in two rooms, Jakob misses the most important events in his life. Athos's stories evoke images of Jakob's faceless family and friends. He lives in constant fear of the kicked-in door, writes letters to the dead, and suffers nightmares. Athos is a geologist specializing in peat, limestone, and archaeological wood. The last of a seafaring family, he passes to Jakob his own nautical history to replace what he has lost, but insists that he retain his Hebrew. Jakob remembers Bella, who used to be obsessed with Beethoven, and he has nightmares about incomplete lives. He wonders if his remembering is painful to the dead. Athos's stories in English and Greek begin to make sense. Athos opens his rich and diverse library,expanding Jakob's horizons, interesting him in ancient cultures. Jakob feels Bella...