'The Garbage Collector,' and 'The Great Fire,' and 'The Golden Apples of the Sun' Summary

In 'The Garbage Collector,' a garbage collector comes home and tells his wife that he is going to quit his job. He explains that the government has fitted their vans with special radios so that in the event of nuclear war they can go round and collect all the bodies from the streets. The garbage collector cannot cope with this potential role. He decides that they should move their family out to the farm they inherited from his father, in order to be safe if the worst should happen.

In 'The Great Fire,' a girl called Marianne is staying with her uncle and aunt while her parents are away in Europe...