The following version of this book was used to create this study guide: Eggers, Dave. The Parade. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2019.

The novel is set in the present day in an unnamed country. The country has been ravaged by decades of civil war, but the government has finally reached a peace agreement with the rebel forces. The story follows a man who is referred to only by his work codename: Four. Four is from a different (also unnamed) country, and he works for a large corporation. The corporation has sent him to the war-ravaged country and has tasked him with operating a high-tech paving machine to pave a long road. The government plans to have a celebratory peace parade when the road is finished. Four is eager to finish the task as soon as possible so that he can return home to his wife and kids.

Four’s assigned partner is an inexperienced employee called Nine. Nine’s only qualification is that, unlike Four, Nine can speak the local language. While Four operates the paving machine, Nine is supposed to be making sure that there are no people or debris in the way. However, Nine completely shirks his responsibilities. Nine instead uses his company-issued all-terrain vehicle to socialize with locals in nearby villages. Such socialization is strictly against company guidelines. Four decides not to report Nine to the company, as Four worries that Nine’s incompetence would also reflect badly on Four. Thus, Four simply focuses on driving the paving vehicle.

Four’s work is mostly peaceful and uneventful. The task is scheduled to take several days; during the nights, Four sleeps in a portable tent. Although there are many signs of the destruction of war, the war itself has ceased. Nine occasionally rejoins Four to converse. Nine enjoys speaking with the locals. Nine learns that the president’s wife was killed by a rebel group years ago, and yet the president has still pursued peace over revenge. Four does his best to ignore Nine and his unprofessionalism. However, Four becomes very irritated whenever Nine’s absence becomes an impediment. At one point, Four encounters a lost-looking boy, but he is incapable of communicating with the boy because Nine (who knows the local language) is not present.

Several days into the work, Four sees Nine playing in a river. Nine soon falls very ill, likely due to some disease he contracted from the river. A local man expresses concern and a desire to help. Four does not learn the man’s name, but he internally nicknames the man Medallion, as the man is wearing a medallion. Medallion shows Four to a nearby clinic where they can get medicine. After the clinic worker refuses to help them, Medallion organizes a covert raid to steal medicine. Four administers the medicine to Nine, and Nine begins to recover.

Four continues with the work, but he and Nine are soon arrested by a group of vigilantes. The group’s leader says that Nine had inappropriate sexual contact with a young woman in the village. Four secures his and Nine’s release by giving money to the vigilante leader. Four soon completes paving the road, which ends at the country’s capital city. Four then immediately boards a plane to go home, while Nine decides to stay in the capital for a few days. From the plane, Four watches as many people from rural parts of the country walk towards the capital city. The government then launches a surprise military attack, killing the people and moving down the road.