The History of Sound: Stories

In May 1976, first-person narrator Edwin Chase is 20 years old and living on Nantucket with his mother Laurel. They have been alone on their farm together since Edwin’s father Silas died the year prior. In the years since Silas returned from the war, his mental health deteriorated, and one morning, Edwin found Silas floating face down in their frozen pond. The neighbor Paul Pinkham helped Edwin excavate Silas’s body.

One day, Edwin and Laurel are outside when a man and woman approach in the distance. Edwin doesn’t recognize them, but Laurel knows who they are. When they arrive, they introduce themselves as Will and Rivkah. Will exclaims at how changed Edwin is; he met Edwin once when he was two. Will explains that he and Laurel grew up together and have been friends for years, but she never returned to their hometown after she married Silas. He introduces Rivkah as his wife. They’re leaving New England for Barbados, and Will wanted to say goodbye before departing.

Inside, Edwin notices Rivkah’s dour expression, but Laurel and Will are buoyant and talkative. Laurel sends Edwin out to shoot a duck for dinner, and when he returns, he notices Laurel and Will still talking happily by the fire.