Summary

Chapter 7 begins 20 years after the pandemic. Modern civilization as readers know it is non-existent. A group of actors and musicians called the Traveling Symphony are making their way through unfamiliar territory somewhere near Lake Michigan. Their destination is St. Deborah by the Water. One of the travelers is Kirsten, now an adult. The group is staging King Lear. People are surprised that after the end of modern civilization, Shakespeare is the most successful of the plays they perform.

Kirsten’s friend August, a violinist who had recently started acting, and who secretly writes poetry, is introduced. August is fascinated with memories of television shows and TV Guide. Kirsten doesn’t remember much from her childhood, unable to even recall what a computer monitor looked like. August and Kirsten like to break into abandoned houses. He looks for relics from television, while she...