Chapter 2 Summary

Lauren, two of her brothers and several other neighborhood children are receiving baptism by immersion today. They are riding on bicycles in a large group outside the wall to receive the sacrament of baptism in a church, which, for some miraculous reason, has remained unscathed by the social anarchy in the city. Lauren does not believe in the doctrines of the Baptist church, but she loves and respects her father too much to inform him that she has no desire to undergo the rite of baptism. Her brother, Keith, has no faith in Christianity either, but he does not care whether he is baptized or not. It is easier not to argue with their dad.

Lauren does not like her half-brother, Keith, thinking he is dumb, not in an intellectual way, but socially. Keith, though only thirteen, is fascinated with the goings on...