Part II: Chapter 9, A World in a Wall Summary and Analysis

Gerald explores a crumbling wall that lines the property. Brick-laid and coated in peeling plaster houses an assortment of life. Geckos share space with beetles and glowworms. Gerald's favorite inhabitants of the wall are the scorpions. Gerald admires their black shiny bodies as they hunt and perform mating rituals. One day Gerald finds a mother scorpion with a carpet of tiny babies clinging to her form. Unable to leave her, Gerald carefully captures the scorpion and her brood and takes them home.

Gerald places the scorpion in a matchbox on the mantelpiece then forgets about them during the rambunctious meal. Larry discovers the scorpions when he attempts to light his cigarette. A shrieking melee ensues as Larry shakes the scorpions of f his arm and onto the...