Edward Fenton's narrative methods are the first of many literary qualities that stand out in The Refugee Summer. The narrative voice of the novel, for example, surprises the reader almost at once. Although the narration is held in the first person, one has no idea who the speaker may be. He or she is obviously one of the children as he/she follows all of their antics and adventures and can thus not be an adult since the children dislike grownups and do not have any around them during their escapades.

Although one has no idea of who the narrator may be, this does not make the reader uncomfortable, and the narrator is most certainly reliable and trustworthy. Furthermore, he also seems to know more than the characters themselves. This is evident when he openly states that "Sotiris didn't see that" when describing the burning of...