Summary

In Chapter 23, Marianne and Father introduce themselves. Antonio faces the language barrier but Marianne speaks fluent Italian, though she urges him to learn French. She thanks them for the wine, says they are celebrating the arrival of Lucie and Adele, and shows them toward the food and beverage tables. Antonio watches the other guests – two muscled men holding hands, a thin girl who is eating a lot, a group of young men smoking marijuana. He sees a man who looks like actor Marty Feldman. Considering the strange mix of people, he becomes convinced it is but then remembers Feldman died a year earlier. He wanders through the courtyard and the kitchen. Adele greets him and they discuss a saying on the wall, basically that “we're surrounded by wonders and don't realize it” (158). He makes a plate and joins Father, and they agree they...