The news on the hour, 14th June, one o’clock. Tina Murphy reporting. An unprecedented flood. London. Uninhabitable.
-- Narration (i.)

Importance: Although the natural disaster is the defining incident in the novel it is depicted in vague terms, with this quotation representing one of the most detailed accounts of exactly what happens. The lack of specifics about the disaster reflects the narrator’s preoccupation with protecting her baby. The specifics of the disaster matter little to her: she is only interested in how they impact her ability to raise her child.

Words float up the stairs like so many childhood letter magnets. Endgame, civilizations, catastrophe, humanitarian.
-- Narration (ii.)

Importance: The narrator continues her life in an isolated bubble in which childrearing takes precedence over any interest in the outside world. Instead of being glued to the television looking for news about the disaster, the narrator vaguely keeps track of developments by catching occasional words that reveal...