Summary

In "Farewell," after the attacks, Mr. Matsumoto's building managers hung emergency instructions in the lobby, advising residents to "assemble a Go Bag," and create a "Household Disaster Plan" (29).

Nathaniel wonders if he should reevaluate his life. He could use Matsumoto's return "as an opportunity…[to] do something," like call his old crush, Delphine (30). He has no idea where she is. She used to talk about the world beyond New York, disgusted by Americans’ detachment from reality. She disliked how little Nathaniel's contemporaries knew about the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Nathaniel did not want to be grouped with the general population.

In "The Age of Digital Reasoning," Lucien considers alternate versions of reality. He cannot explain why he did not die on the L.A. flight. He wonders what "the point of thinking about death" is (32). Each person only dies once. Perhaps...