Summary

The novel opens with a reminiscent prologue by an unnamed narrator. He shares memories of his childhood spent in an orphanage in New Anchorage, Alaska, where he immigrated when he was six years old. He recalls his passion for collecting postcards. As he grew older, he hid his collection in an old oil barrel, but at one point considered discarding the barrel for fear that it would be viewed by some as a “petulant political statement” (3) representative of the rebellious cause from a past conflict. Although the narrator has lived in a neutral part of the United States since he was six years old, he was born a “Southerner,” and therefore speculates that some of his present-day colleagues suspect him of still having “rebel Red in [his] blood” (3).

The narrator notes that his favorite postcards come from the pre-war era during the 2030s and...