An Overture to the Commencement of a Very Rigid Journey; The Beginning of the World Often Comes; The Lottery, 1791; Letter Dated 20 July 1997; An Overture to Encountering the Hero, and Then Encountering the Hero Summary

Alexander Perchov is a young man who is interested in music, girls, and America. Alex lives in the Ukraine, but has learned to speak English in school because of his interest in America. Jonathan Safran Foer is a young man who lives in America and has recently learned that his grandfather was saved from the Nazis during the war by a family whose young daughter Jonathan believes was called Augustine. Jonathan is interested in finding Augustine.

In "An Overture...