The Diamond as Big as the Ritz Annotated

John T. Unger, a youngster from the Mississippi River town of Hades, is sent to a private boarding school near Boston. During the summer he visits the homes of his classmates, the majority of whom are from wealthy families. In the middle of his sophomore year, a young man named Percy Washington is placed in Unger's dorm. During the train ride Percy boasts that his father is "by far the richest man in the world", and boasts that his father "has a diamond bigger than the Ritz-Carlton Hotel." Percy's ancestry traces back to both George Washington and Lord Baltimore. John falls in love with Percy's sister, Kismine, who accidentally lets slip that John too will be killed before he is allowed to leave. That night, airplanes launch an attack on the property, having been informed by an escaped Italian language teacher. Percy's father offers a bribe to God, "the greatest diamond in the world", but God, being the Owner of everything, naturally refuses. John, Kismine, and Jasmine, another sister, escape while Percy and his mother and father choose to blow up the mountain rather than leave it in the hands of others. Penniless, the three survivors are left to ponder their fate.