Table of Contents
Prologue: In which an angel watches a man fall from a window in Illinois, then flies to Wisconsin with pressing business 3
Chapter 1 In which we meet a man who isn't there 10
Chapter 2 In which we encounter a mermaid and witness the birth of another imaginary being 23
Chapter 3 In which one shining city falls and another begins to rise from, the prairie 33
Chapter 4 In which a kingdom is horn 53
Chapter 5 In which one charlatan is run out of town, only to be replaced by an even greater scoundrel 72
Chapter 6 In which the end of the world approaches and a sea monster is spotted off Beaver Island 82
Chapter 7 In which we meet J. J. Strang's mysterious nephew 94
Chapter 8 In which our protagonist faces a choice between the diabolical and the divine-and, for once, does not place himself on both sides 106
Chapter 9 In which the King of Earth and Heaven is inaugurated with a crown made of paper on a throne stuffed with tree moss 120
Chapter 10 In which the inhabitants of Beaver Island evolve into what Charles Darwin might have called "a different set of beings" 130
Chapter 11 In which a melodrama is performed, and the curtains fall on one of the players 140
Chapter 12 In which the country's chief executive can't make up his mind 155
Chapter 13 In which many people feel trapped 164
Chapter 14 In which one fanatic hunts a white whale and another tracks down a missing monarch 172
Chapter 15 In which a tragedy opens in Detroit, and a drama comes to its climax on Beaver Island 181
Chapter 16 In which a murderous mood descends upon the kingdom 188
Chapter 17 In which the prosecutor wishes he had a bit more evidence, and the defendant wishes he had one true friend 199
Chapter 18 In which the King of Earth and Heaven runs for elective office 206
Chapter 19 In which the King of Beaver Island visits his old haunts, contemplates eating poison, and loses a machine that can predict the future 217
Chapter 20 In which a legend appears, and a horse thief departs 226
Chapter 21 In which the prophet writes a book, and his followers vote like hell 238
Chapter 22 In which the prophet, like just about everyone else, threatens to slaughter all his enemies 248
Chapter 23 In which the picture comes into focus 257
Chapter 24 In which various people whip their neighbors, bludgeon their colleagues, hack their enemies to death, and bring the United States to the verge of civil war while James Strang insists there's absolutely nothing to worry about 268
Chapter 25 In which the king makes his final procession 280
Chapter 26 In which our story ends where it began-with a disappearance 287
Epilogue: In which the ship steams away 296
Acknowledgments 309
Notes 315
Bibliography 377
Index 387
