From Westmont Professor, Amanda Sparkman. The people of Anacapa are afraid of the dark. The stars. The heat of the sun. The winds that whip up rain and sand. They would be afraid of coyotes, owls, snakes and frogs—if there were any left. But wildlife has been sparse since the Bottleneck, and little moves on the dry wastes outside the city walls. Inside the city, there’s plenty of food and clean energy. And people take care of each other. But 11-year-old Peter is not sure that’s enough. He’s confused by the fear everyone seems to feel. And he wishes the birds he’s seen in books were still around. Then one day he spots a falcon on a roof. And learns that the wilderness is still alive, if he can only find a way to get there.