Bernice's Apartment

The majority of the story takes place in Bernice's apartment in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Bernice, Silas, and Dove all live in the apartment together after Bernice and Dove get married. Bernice also retreats to the apartment when she starts staying home from work and opting to read instead. That most of the interactions in the story take place within the apartment compresses the characters into close proximity with one another and pressurizes the narrative, causing rifts between all three of them as the story progresses. After Bernice dies, Silas remains in the apartment, where he and Dove one day share a beer when Dove comes to collect his records.

The Hospital

When the characters are not in Bernice's apartment, they are at the hospital, after Bernice has a stroke and goes to the emergency room. There, tensions continue to mount as Silas is frustrated and embarrassed by...