Baltimore

Baltimore is the city in which the actions of the plot unfold. However, the fact that the characters are in Baltimore bears very lightly on the plot. The characters make references to nearby locations, such as Washington D.C., and Montrose College, but the city of Baltimore itself does not figure significantly in the plot. When Brink describes to Micah how he has been living in various hotels in the city, Baltimore plays a role in contrasting the grittiness of the urban environment against Brink's innocence and sheltered upbringing. Brink also has a conversation with Micah about the Baltimore Orioles, the city's professional baseball team. But beyond this, Baltimore as a setting hardly figures anywhere else in the novel. Nevertheless, the narrator will often reference the names of various streets and roadways without any further context, suggesting that it is assumed the reader knows certain things about the...