All the Water in the World

Nonie’s older sister, Bix has a better memory of “The World As It Was.” Her real name is Beatrice, but she prefers Bix, a name she took from a vinyl jazz record that belonged to her mother called Bix Beiderbecke on Tenth Street. Bix enjoyed the solos on the recording. In contrast to Nonie, she has a severe phobia of water because of a traumatic event when the entire family had to flee their apartment during a hurricane. A storm surge flooded the street, nearly washing Bix away. She’s a more practical person than Nonie and isn’t explicitly neurodivergent, since she can blend in socially where Nonie can’t. This would have given her privilege in “The World As It Was.” In “The World As It Is,” however, water is a dominant part of life, and hyper-specialization is useful; this means that in many ways, Nonie’s talents and interests offer her privilege. Bix enters a catatonic state when forced to get into a body of water. While the museum is flooding, Father relies on Nonie to coax Bix into the canoe. This inverts a common trope wherein a character soothes a neurodivergent sibling during a meltdown.

Away from water, Bix is a risk taker, especially in the dark or in unknown circumstances. She exhibits an irresistible urge to advance toward danger and investigate it. Nonie says that Bix can find treasures in the shadows but can also find danger. For example, Nonie recalls that once while they hunted for deer, Bix led Nonie and her first love, Mano, too far into the park, and they attracted the attention of a pack of feral dogs. Rather than fleeing, Bix approached them, forcing Mano to defend her, which led to his death, an event that weighs heavily on her and damages her relationship with Keller, who was Mano’s guardian. Bix gradually overcomes her fear of water throughout the novel and proves that she’s a formidable survivor, fighting and killing two men after they attack her during a storm.

Before society collapsed, Keller was an entomologist. He arrived at Amen with his partner, Angel, and her nephew, Mano. On the journey to Amen, Angel lost a pregnancy, which Keller avoids talking about. Because Keller is cautious and thoughtful, he’s a foil to Father, who is headstrong and impulsive. Keller is a nurturing figure. Nonie remarks that while Father will do something for you so quickly, you don’t even see it, Keller takes the time to walk you through each step. He has a special relationship with Nonie, recognizing her particular way of seeing the world. He plays a game with her called Animal in Mind, a variation on 20 Questions in which one person chooses an animal from the AMNH exhibitions and gives hints until the other player correctly guesses what it is. This game appeals to Nonie’s desire to categorize and memorize large swathes of information.

Because of his skin color, Keller faces much adversity in “The World As It Is.” The dissolution of society has re-entrenched white supremacy in some settlements, so as a Black man, he’s seen as a threat by the world’s more insular and racist survivor communities. When he must approach them, he’s extremely cautious. Several times, it’s made clear that he’s granted entry into a specific area because he’s accompanying Nonie and Bix, two young white girls. As resources become scarcer, some people tend toward an us-versus-them dichotomy.

Keller has lost many loved ones. Angel lost a pregnancy before they reached Amen. He loses Angel to a mosquito-borne illness and Mano to a dog attack while Mano is out hunting with Bix. While he doesn’t hold a grudge against Bix for Mano’s death, he does seem to hold her responsible on some level, since he’s distant and occasionally harsh with her. He perseveres through his grief and recognizes the grief in Bix too when she loses Father, softening him toward her and repairing their relationship.

Nonie and Bix’s dad is named Alan, but Nonie refers to him as Father throughout the book. In “The World As It Was,” he was an expert in Indigenous American architecture, a specialization that comes in handy in establishing Amen. He’s a leadership figure due to his incredible confidence and the feeling of safety he projects. Keller calls him Safety Pup, after a public service announcement (PSA) mascot.

However, much like Bix, he can be incautious. He places a lot of trust in Nonie and her ability to predict the weather and calm Bix. He’s sentimental for the “World As It Was” and is willing to take risks for the sake of nostalgia, such as when he steers the canoe past his old family home as the survivors of Amen leave Manhattan. He’s always game for challenging other people’s opinions, but Keller, who is more cautious, tempers Father’s eager attitude.