Summary

The chapter marks Part I of the novel and is set in St. James, Louisiana, in 2075. Rising sea levels have had catastrophic effects: entire buildings, residential areas, and cities were flooded and absorbed by the ocean. A scene unfolds of a six-year-old girl sitting on her porch and playing with honey, and her mother, Martina, scolds her for wasting it. The girl is named Sara T. Chestnut, although she calls herself Sarat. Her family resides in a salvaged shipping container, but their makeshift home is crowded and uncomfortable: it often leaks, it overheats in the summers, and it makes loud noises when exposed to rain. They maintain a vigil of the Virgin of Guadeloupe by the entrance, embellished with flowers and a candle.

The family gathers for breakfast while Benjamin, Sarat's father, waits for an acquaintance to pick him up. He plans to go...