Summary

In “To the Desert,” Nicole is dropped off at a house in the desert (with Friedman's dog and the suitcase from Eva Hoffe's apartment) by a soldier who assures her that someone will be coming back for her. She looks through some books and finds one called Forests of Israel. It occurs to her that she is in the house where Kafka spent his final days. She feels as though she is “falling out of time” (259). She reflects on Greek ideas of time, like the word “kairos” used to signify a “supreme moment” (259). Nicole worries that she has missed her supreme moment. She feels feverish, but also like she is on the verge of a great understanding. She drags the bed from inside the house out into the yard and lays down to look at...