Onset, Chapter 1 Summary

Chapter 1: Tony searches for a starting point for the story of Zenia's life. Zenia has lied so often and so successfully about her family origins that Tony cannot be certain of the truth. It is too late to ask Zenia, and Zenia would not tell the truth anyway. Tony wonders if there is any point in unraveling Zenia's complicated story at this late date. The damage caused by Zenia has already been done. Yet as a historian, Tony believes that such real-life puzzles can be solved. "She has a historian's belief in the salutary power of explanations." (pg. 4) Thus, Tony decides to begin her story on October 23, 1990, the day Zenia returns from the dead.

Onset, Chapter 1 Analysis

In this brief section, the author establishes the tone and style of the novel. Although the novel will also be recounted from Tony's friends'...