New Prospect

New Prospect is the Illinois town in which the novel is set. The Hildebrandt family has lived here ever since moving from Indiana. They reside in a parsonage, a house owned by and provide for the family by the First Reformed Church the family attends. Over the course of the first overarching section, "Advent," the family members leave and return to the house over the course of a single day. The majority of the novel's remaining scenes take place in and around the town.

Parsonage

The parsonage is the house where the Hildebrandt family lives. It is owned by First Reformed, and has been provided for the family because of Russ's ministerial role at the church. Although all of the family members, with the exception of Clem, reside here in the narrative present, they are never collected at the house at the same time. The parsonage is...