Central Park

New York City's Central Park is near the Schell home, and a favorite family haunt. Oskar plays there with his Grandma, once hiding from her, causing her great consternation, after which she insists that any time she calls his name, he must answer "I'm OK." On weekends, Oskar's late Dad sometimes organizes "Reconnaissance Expeditions" for Oskar to follow clues through the park. On the last evening of his life, Dad tells Oskar a story about New York's drifting Sixth Borough and how residents of Manhattan refuse to relinquish the park and drag it to its present position with gigantic hooks. Fossils, the reservoir's pH, the odd position of some cages in the zoo, and two names carved into trees in the park provide circumstantial evidence for the myth.

Columbian Bakery

The coffee shop on Broadway in New York where Thomas Schell, Sr., and Grandma first meet...